Addicted to Love
by The Script Machine
Summary: (PREQUEL to Hardest of Hearts) Love. It's a curious, baffling, complex, sometimes infuriating thing, and it's hard to be rid of. With love, most people gradually fall into it, for others it happens in an instant. Something Loki Odinson knows very, very well. (LokixOC. Rated T for mild content. Set before and during Thor. Thor property of Marvel.)
1. Chapter One

**Okay so this is a prequel to my story Hardest of Hearts, but for those who HAVE NOT read Hardest of Hearts, you do not need to read that first to understand this. But it would mean a lot to me if you read it after.**

**And for those who HAVE read it, you'll notice some references to Hardest of Hearts but there won't be many and the story will still be clear, and I also want to thank you for reading this one as well.**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

**The story title is based off the song 'Addicted to Love' by Florence and the Machine, whom I do not own.**

* * *

"Now girls, remember to be on your best behaviour. We don't want the royal family to think low of us."

"Yes, mother." The two sisters said simultaneously.

Their mother, Astrid Garnockdottir, wife of Cyrus, was preparing her daughters for their first visit to the palace, where the King of Asgard, Odin, and his family had invited them.

The older black-haired women eyed her daughters with her brown eyes, and pushed her one streak of grey hair away from her face as inspected them from head to toe for any imperfection. Her daughters were her pride and joy, as they were her only children, and she loved them both dearly, but she was a perfectionist, and anything imperfect had to be fixed or the rest of her day would be off balance.

Viveca, the eldest, did not share her mother's looks, but instead shared her father's. Dark brown hair, pale skin, but had her mother's brown eyes, as opposed her father's grey. Viveca was a proud, smart, and beautiful young woman, who held herself with great pride and elegance. But she was not above creating petty scandals and gossip, and she was a stubborn, high-tempered, dramatic girl, who loved to complain and who shared her mother's desire for perfection, often considering others below her if she didn't deem them perfect, even though she was considered one of the lowest by the rest of Asgard.

And then there was Luciana, the youngest. Unlike her sister, she shared her mother's looks, black hair, pale skin, but had her father's grey eyes. Luciana was not unlike Viveca, but she wasn't exactly the same. She held herself with elegance as well, but with a much lower amount of pride. She, like her sister, was quite smart and beautiful, but she didn't get involved with gossip and scandals, and wasn't at all dramatic. And although she was a stubborn perfectionist as well, she didn't place herself above others, for she knew the bitter taste of discrimination.

The two sisters were like day and night, the sun and the moon, black and white. They were opposites, yet in an odd way the same. And they liked it that way.

"I don't even see why we have to go," Viveca said, getting irritated as her mother straightened her purple dress. "It's not like it's going to change anything."

"Actually," Astrid said, looking her eldest over. "It may change things quite a bit. If we make a good impression on the King, he may deem us more trustworthy and the rest of Asgard will follow."

You see, Astrid, her husband, and their daughters, all practiced sorcery. They knew powerful enchantments and curses that could overthrow even the most powerful of kingdoms, a fact that the rest of Asgard found unsettling. The rest of Asgard found it so unsettling, that many, many centuries ago, during the war between Asgard and Jotunheim, they forced all those who practiced witchcraft, wizardry, and sorcery, out into the deep woods of Asgard, fearing that during the war the magicians could rise up against Asgard.

Many of the magicians did in fact leave, most of them away from Asgard and into other realms. But some families, like Astrid's, chose to remain deep in the woods and far from the city. Thought the magicians had now been allowed to return to Asgard, Astrid and her family were the only ones who remained in the woods, and practiced magic freely, unlike those who had returned to Asgard, who chose to stop the practice, though occasionally young men and women who were brave enough to venture into the woods showed up at Astrid's home, asking to be an apprentice to Cyrus.

Cyrus Darrochson was Astrid's husband, and a powerful sorcerer, who often took in apprentices, who were usually the children of former sorcerers. He was a great and wise man who loved his family very much, unfortunately he was also quite set in his ways and refused to give up the practice of magic, instead stubbornly confining him and his family deeper into the woods, where they were almost never found.

Viveca sighed irritated. "What say you, Luciana?" She asked her younger sister.

"Well, I agree with mother," The younger one said. "If things go well then maybe we will no longer be discriminated by the rest of Asgard."

"Very good, Luciana," Astrid say as she pushed her daughter's black hair away from her face. "At least someone isn't as stubborn as someone else." She said narrowing her eyes as Viveca.

"Well it's not that I don't wish to go," Viveca defended. "It's just that the city is so far away, and the palace even farther, and I hate riding, mother, you know that! I'll be sore by the time we reach the palace, I'll barely be able to present myself in a dignified manner!"

"Well, dear," A man's voice began. A tall, older man with dark brown greying hair walked into the room where the three ladies stood. "You'll have to at least make an effort. I'll admit, I'm not overly fond of visiting the palace either. But we have too, for the good of our family."

Viveca grumbled and crossed her arms as she looked down at her feet. Luciana looked at the man she recognized as her father, and smiled.

"Shouldn't we be off?" She asked. "We do want to get there by nightfall, don't we?"

"Of course, we do!" Viveca said for her father. "I don't fancy being eaten by a troll."

Astrid chuckled at her eldest daughter and took her husband's arm. "Well, then we best be going, the horses are already outside along with our things."

Luciana and Viveca followed their parents out of their stone castle-like house, Viveca complaining about the riding distance as she got onto her brown horse. Luciana ignored her sister as she climbed on her white mare, lost in thought.

Luciana had never left the forest, anything that the family needed her father conjured up, had to be found in the forest, or her mother grew in her garden. So it was easy to imagine the young woman's excitement about leaving the seemingly endless array of trees and dirt, and into the city her mother had told her stories about.

She was abruptly brought out of her thoughts by her horse suddenly racing forward and down the long dirt path.

"Calypso! Calypso, stop!" Luciana screamed as her horse bounded down the road. But the horse didn't listen as she continued to race down the road.

Luciana heard her father's laughter and the sound of another set of running hooves. "You need to learn to control your horse, dear!" He shouted as his black horse caught up to hers.

"She's never listened to anyone, what makes you think she'll start now?" Luciana replied as her mare only began to run faster, making the black steed speed up.

Astrid laughed as the two horses bounded down the road, and she kicked her caramel mare to go faster. "Come on, now. Don't want to lose them." She said to a frowning Viveca before speeding off.

Viveca groaned as she watched her mother speed up. "Great."

* * *

"Will you make your bloody horse slow down, Luciana? I can't keep up!" Viveca yelled at her sister.

"She won't listen!" Luciana called back as Calypso continued to race down the road.

Cyrus and Astrid chuckled at their daughters, who were now racing in front of them. "We'll be in Asgard soon." Astrid said to her husband as she slowed her horse down to a steady trot to match Cyrus' pace.

"I know," Cyrus said, turning his head to look at his wife.

"I do hope he thinks more highly of us after this visit, perhaps we can get the girls proper husbands." Astrid said.

"And my apprentices are not proper?" He asked, raising an eyebrow teasingly.

"Not that they aren't 'proper' to say, but they are-"

"I know," He cut her off. "Foolish, arrogant, and they lack intelligence."

"That's not what I think of them," She said, looking at her husband in shock.

"Yes, well I do," He said, chuckling. "You're right, I do hope they marry men who have some decency, or can at least tell the difference between left and right!"

Astrid laughed at her husband. "Yes, you did spend quite some time in the forest looking for them."

"And they didn't even fetch what I asked for, they picked toadstools, not mushrooms, there is a difference!"

Astrid laughed again before suddenly becoming serious. "Do you think it was wise to leave them in charge of the house?" She asked worriedly.

"Not to worry, I've locked everything up and taken the most dangerous things along with us, and we'll only be gone for two weeks."

"That's an awful long time, dear." Astrid said.

"Don't worry, I'll go back by myself in three days to see the damage." He assured his wife.

Suddenly the two heard a scream and looked over to their daughters, before chuckling again.

"Calypso! Don't do that!" Luciana yelled at her horse, who had bucked her off.

"Serves you right for not training that thing properly!" Viveca said looking down at her younger sister.

"Oh hush up, Viveca!" Luciana said, brushing herself off before placing herself back on her mare. "It's not like you haven't done things properly!"

"Actually, I've done everything properly, if you haven't noticed Rosalind is perfectly trained!" Viveca said gesturing to her mare.

"Yes, but you're not! Or do I have to remind you about the little teleportation accident?" Luciana teased.

Viveca frowned and looked back towards the road ahead of her.

"Oh we're here!" She said, seeing the outline of the city.

Calypso seemed to understand Viveca's words and sped up once more, racing towards the city.

"Calypso!" Luciana screamed.

"Here we go again!" Viveca exclaimed, kicking Rosalind to speed up, and Cyrus and Astrid laughed and did the same. The three horses racing to catch up with the speeding white mare that ran towards the city.

* * *

After riding after her through the city at top speed, they finally caught up with the white mare at the entrance of the palace, and found Luciana staring up at it in awe and Calypso dead still, equally stunned at the sight before her.

"Here it is girls," Cyrus said to his daughters. "The palace of Asgard."

"It's beautiful..." Luciana breathed as she got off her horse and led the mare by the reins towards the entrance.

"It is, isn't it?" Astrid said getting off her mare and leading it to follow Luciana.

"How long will we be staying again?" Viveca asked as she caught up to her mother and sister.

"Two weeks," Cyrus said. "We'll be here for two weeks, and I expect the both of you to behave."

The sisters stayed silent as they walked through the courtyard, admiring the nearby garden.

"Excuse me!" A voice called, and the family turned around to see a guard walking towards them.

"I suppose you are Lord Cyrus Darrochson?" The guard asked as he stopped in front of them.

"I am," Cyrus replied.

"Good, the King is waiting for you in the throne room, a servant will attend to your horses. Now if you will, follow me." He said before turning around and walking.

"What a nice welcome," Viveca said sarcastically. "I feel one hundred percent welcome."

"Remember, people don't think highly of us, this is our chance to prove them wrong." Astrid reminded her daughter as she handed the reins of her horse to a servant before walking after the guard with Cyrus.

"Well that will be quite easy, don't you agree, Luciana?" Viveca sarcastically said again, handing her reins to the servant.

Luciana rolled her eyes and followed after her mother and father, with Viveca close behind.

"We won't ever be truly accepted, you know. There will always be people who deem us untrustworthy. Just because if the King grows to trust us doesn't mean the rest of Asgard will." Viveca whispered to her sister.

Luciana stayed silent, but knew her sister was right.

There will never be a truly warm welcome.

* * *

**Okay so chapter one is done!**

**Please review!**


	2. Chapter Two

**Chapter two is here! Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

Luciana swallowed as the doors to the throne room opened, nervousness taking over her body.

She peered over her father's shoulder and saw the King, Odin, sitting on his throne, and beside him was the Queen, Frigga. She was so focused on the royals in front of her that she didn't notice her family had started walking ahead until Viveca pulled her arm, harshly whispering for her to move.

She walked behind her parents slowly, happy that her shorter self was behind her father's tall frame, mostly concealing her from sight.

Usually Luciana was a relatively confident person, but she had never met anyone else besides her father's apprentices, so meeting a royal was out of the question.

Her parent's suddenly stopped and kneeled in front of Odin, their arms placed over their hearts. Viveca and Luciana looked at each other confused for a moment before copying the gesture.

"You're majesty," Cyrus said diplomatically. "It is a great honour to be in your presence, my family and I thank you for your invitation."

"The pleasure is mine, Cyrus, you may stand." Odin's voice said, and the family of four stood up straight.

"We welcome you to our home," Frigga said warmly, walking over to Astrid.

"Your home is quite lovely," Astrid complimented, and Frigga smiled.

"And who are these lovely young ladies?" She asked looking at Viveca and Luciana.

"Oh forgive me," Cyrus said pulling his daughters closer to the Queen. "My eldest daughter, Viveca," He said gesturing to Viveca, who smiled and curtsied. "And my youngest daughter, Luciana," He continued as he gestured to his other daughter.

Luciana smiled and mimicked her sister, unsure of what to say.

"Oh they are quite lovely," Frigga said smiling at them warmly, making Luciana feel relaxed. "You know, we have two sons about your age. Though they seemed to have other plans." Frigga said, somewhat annoyed.

"Yes, we apologize for our son's rudeness, they seemed to have forgotten we had company arriving." Odin said walking over to Cyrus.

"It's quite alright," Astrid said, smiling. "Perhaps we'll have the honour of meeting them later, right girls?" She said looking at her two daughters and raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, of course," Viveca said with an overly forgiving tone and a forced smile to match.

Luciana knew her sister was trying to hide her distaste for the prince's absence, she liked to have everything go her way, like Astrid, and would let something as simple as two foolish boy's absence bother her, unlike Luciana, who would brush off that sort of thing unless extremely important.

Of course, Luciana couldn't say she wasn't upset by the prince's failure to meet them, she thought it impolite to not greet company, but she wouldn't let it bother her to the point where she was practically seething under a forced smile, like Viveca.

"Yes, well Frigga?" Odin said. "Why don't you take Astrid and the girls to the garden, while Cyrus and I discuss some matters."

"Of course! Oh you'll all love the garden, I'm sure!" Frigga said happily as she linked arms with Astrid and walked out of the throne room, Luciana and Viveca close behind.

"Oh we saw it when we first arrived, it is quite gorgeous," Astrid said to Frigga.

The two women chattered happily about nearly everything as the four walked to the garden, making it obvious that they were already good friends, and Luciana and Viveca only walked in silence behind them, nodding at times when they were pulled into the conversation.

* * *

"I'm particularly fond of roses," Astrid said as she walked with Frigga through the garden.

"Oh so am I, they are lovely, aren't they?" Frigga responded.

Luciana and Viveca tuned the women out as they admired the various flowers.

"Can you believe the King's sons?" Viveca whispered, not wanting Frigga or her mother to hear. "I mean, they obviously knew we we're coming, but didn't care enough to show up!"

"It's alright, Viveca," Luciana whispered back to her sister. "There's really no need to get worked up over this, I'm upset that they didn't have the decency to show up as well, but if you think about it, what would we have in common with boys anyway?"

"I bet if we were men those princes would have been there."

"But we are not men," Luciana reminded.

"And? A woman can do anything a man can do, sometimes even better!" Viveca said, defending her gender as she walked among the flowers.

"I agree with you, Viveca, I really do, but I what I'm saying is-" Luciana started but was cut off by her sister's high-pitched scream.

"What?" Luciana asked, shocked.

"There's a body in the bushes!" Her sister cried.

"What?" Luciana exclaimed terrified, and she looked to where her sister was.

Sure enough, there was a body of a man lying face first into the dirt, not breathing or showing any signs of life. Luciana's heart started to pound in her chest. There was a dead man right in front of her, no explanation, just a dead man.

"Is-Is he dead?" Viveca stuttered kneeling over him, terror in her eyes. She reached over to touch his hand and without warning the man jumped up and screamed, causing both girls to scream and jump.

The man laughed as he rolled onto his back. "That was too good!" He exclaimed laughing, and another man's laughter was heard behind a nearby pillar.

"Ugh!" Viveca cried. "You horrid little cad!" She screamed, seething with anger. "Mother!" She called before storming off.

The man was still laughing and Luciana inspected him. He had pale skin and black hair, and to top it off he had brilliant green eyes. He stood up still chuckling and Luciana noticed that he was lean and quiet tall, about as tall as her father at the most. All of which were traits that Luciana would've found quite attractive, if she wasn't so angry at the man.

"Why would you do something like that?" She asked him angrily, looking him up and down. "We honestly thought you were dead!"

The man looked at her and abruptly stopped his laughter. His mouth opened and closed as he tried to find something to say, and Luciana raised an eyebrow at him. He didn't say at word at this though, instead he only stared at her in silence.

"Well? Are you going to explain your behaviour or not?" She asked, crossing her arms.

"I, uh, was just having a bit of fun with my brother." He said, getting over his shock and gesturing to the blonde, muscular man that was walking towards them.

"Brother, you were right, that was quite amusing!" The blonde one said chuckling.

"So you're behind this?" Luciana accused, glaring at the black haired one.

"No! I, um-"

"Oh don't be modest, brother," The blonde said, wrapping his arm around his brother's shoulders. "It was just like you said, a reminder of the 'old days' and you were right, the sorcerers daughters did scream quite loud!"

"Thor..." The black-haired one said.

"Well, you two are quite immature and childish! Targeting two girls like that, what were you thinking?" She asked, seething.

"It was just a bit of fun, I meant it as a joke." The black-haired one said.

"Loki, Thor!" Luciana heard Frigga yell before she could respond, and she turned around to see the angry looking Queen. "What were you thinking?"

"Well, apparently this one," Luciana said gesturing to the one she figured was Loki. "Decided that scaring me and my sister would be a 'bit of fun'."

"Loki, I know you've always been one for tricks but this is very, very immature of you!" Frigga scolded.

"Yes, mother, I'm aware of that, and I was just about to apologize to this young lady for my behaviour." He said to his mother as he gestured to Luciana.

"Apology not accepted!" Luciana heard Viveca yell as she stormed over and grabbed her sister. "Come on, Luciana, we're going to find father!"

Viveca dragged Luciana away from the garden, using every curse word she knew.

"...And when we find father, we are going to demand that he take us home!" She yelled to her younger sister who only nodded as she was pulled blindly around the castle in search for their father.

This was going to be a long day.

* * *

Viveca slammed the door to the guest chambers and pulled Luciana to the couch.

"I can't believe Father refused to take us home!" She cried. "Those _boys_ are two of the most foulest creatures to have ever walked on Asgard!"

Luciana only stayed silent as her sister continued to rant, lost in her thought.

Loki had seemed sorry about the joke, if it was even was that, but Luciana was still upset that he'd target her and her sister like that. They hadn't done a thing to him, and now Loki had set Viveca into her furious mode, which was hard to undo.

"You know what?" Viveca said, breaking Luciana out of her thoughts. "We'll ride home ourselves!"

"What?" Luciana asked surprised.

"Well think about it," Viveca said sitting across from her younger sister. "Mother and Father can stay here and work out whatever they need to with Odin, and we can go home and never have to see the princes again!"

"Viveca we can't just do that." Luciana said.

"Oh don't tell me that now you've decided to be a forgiving person!" Viveca exclaimed. "You still can't get over the fact that one of Father's apprentices stepped on your foot!"

"I never said that I forgive anyone, I'm just saying that father needs us to stay, and we owe it to him to do so. And besides its only two weeks and we will hardly have to leave our chambers unless we want to." Luciana explained.

Viveca opened her mouth to protest but was cut off by a knock on the door.

"If that is one of the princes, shut the door!" She said quietly.

Luciana stood up and walked over to the door and opened it.

Before her stood Loki, who had his hands placed behind his back as he looked at her.

"Good evening," He said. "May I, uh, come in for a moment?"

"No!" Viveca called. "Shut the door!"

"Why?" Luciana asked him, ignoring her angry sister.

"I would just like to apologize properly for my childish, immature, and stupid behaviour." He explained.

"Apology _not_ accepted," Viveca yelled again. "Shut the door!"

"Well," Luciana said, still ignoring her sister. "You did behave quite horribly and I'm not one to forgive easily-"

"Neither am I, shut the door!" Viveca continued to yell.

"So," Luciana said, continuing to ignore Viveca. "Your apology, though appreciated, is not enough,"

"Good, now shut the door!"

Luciana began to follow her sister's order but Loki's foot prevented the door from shutting.

"Please, allow me to make it up to the both of you, perhaps a tour of the castle?" He asked.

"No! Luciana, don't accept the offer and _shut the door_!" Viveca yelled, throwing a pillow at Loki's head, but hit the wall instead.

Luciana sighed. She and Viveca were supposed to be on their best behaviour, no matter what, that was one of the rules their Mother had advised them of so many times. And right now, Luciana and Viveca were behaving like the children. She had to accept his offer, even though she wanted to do nothing more but shut the door in Loki's face, she had to do it for her father.

"Fine, a tour of the castle would be lovely." Luciana said and Viveca groaned loudly.

"Great, tomorrow after breakfast?" Loki asked, dodging another pillow that Viveca had thrown at him.

"We'll be ready," She said.

"No we will not! I'm not going and you can't damn well make me!" Viveca yelled.

"I have to go, have a nice night." Luciana said quickly and she shut the door as another pillow was violently thrown at it.

"You're insane!" Viveca said, throwing her last pillow at her sister. "You know he's just going to pull another horrible trick, right?"

"Well, whatever it is, I'm sure we can handle it." Luciana said bending down and retrieving the pillows.

"No, _you _can handle it. I won't be going, I'm going to do the practical thing and refuse to eat or drink until we are allowed to go home!" Viveca declared stomping over to her bed.

"How is going on a melodramatic food strike practical?" Luciana asked.

"It just is! Now I'm going to go to bed. Goodnight, Luciana!" She said bitterly before waving her hand and extinguishing all the lights in the room.

Luciana sighed as she prepared for bed in the dark.

She would never hear the end of this.

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**Please review!**


	3. Chapter Three

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

Loki sat in the dining hall across from Thor, silently eating his breakfast as his parents spoke to Astrid and Cyrus.

Loki, for once, felt bad about the trick he had pulled on Luciana and Viveca, but he couldn't figure out why. He had played worse jokes on other people, and never felt that bad about it, well until he was punished that is. The trick he had played on the girls wasn't actually his best work, he could have done something much worse to scare them and then easily have talked his way out of it, but when Luciana confronted him, his silver tongue turned to lead, and he couldn't for the life of him figure out why.

"Loki?" Frigga asked, breaking him out of his thoughts.

"Yes, mother?"

"Did you apologize to the girls last night?" She asked him.

He nodded. "I did, but they didn't seem to think it sincere."

"That would be my fault, I'm afraid," Cyrus said. "They get their stubbornness from me, they can be quite set in their ways at the best of times."

"Just like you," Astrid commented with a grin before looking towards the door. "Ah, Luciana! We've been waiting for you!"

Loki looked up and saw Luciana enter the room. She wore a long blue dress with short sheer sleeves and she had let her long black hair down, with a subtle poof on the top of her head that was held in place by a silver clip.

"Where is your sister?" Cyrus asked her as Luciana sat down beside Loki.

"Not coming," Luciana said with a shrug. "She declared strike and refuses to leave the chambers until you agree to take her home."

Cyrus and Astrid groaned, and then Astrid stood up. "Silly girl, I'll go get her." She said before briskly walking out of the dining hall.

Loki ignored everyone as he continued to look at Luciana in complete silence, unable to tear his eyes away for some reason.

Luciana felt someone's eyes on her and she looked at Loki, who turned his head and looked down at his plate.

Thor noticed this and smirked at Loki, who looked at his brother.

"What?" He asked.

"It is nothing, Brother," Thor said chuckling, as if he knew something Loki didn't.

Loki stared at his brother for awhile, before putting he gaze back on his plate and slowly eating.

After a few moments Astrid came back into the dining hall, dragging an irritated Viveca with her.

"Now you are going to sit here and eat!" Astrid commanded as she placed her daughter beside Thor and took her own place.

"But-" The girl began to protest.

"No, buts! Now eat." Astrid said.

"Look Viveca, here's a peach, you love peaches." Luciana said handing her older sister the fruit.

Viveca took the peach and inspected it, turning it around in her hand and sniffing it. Her brown eyes flickered over to Loki and she handed him the peach.

"Here, _you _try it first." She said bitterly.

"I didn't poison the fruit," Loki said, his eyebrows furrowing as he stared at the girl.

"Well if you didn't, then you wouldn't mind taking a bite,"

"Look, it was a joke, I didn't mean any harm by it!" Loki said angrily.

"Well you shouldn't be going around and pulling horrid tricks on people in the first place! It makes you look like a childish little cad!" Viveca replied.

"You know, you're behaving like a spoiled brat!" He said leaning over the table towards her.

"I'm behaving like a brat?" She said leaning over the table as well. "Says the man who behaves like a child!"

"Is that all you can come up with? You know you-"

"Okay," Luciana cut in quickly. "I'm done my breakfast and I'm ready to see more of the castle, are you ready Loki?"

"Yes, I am," Loki said standing up and helping Luciana out of her chair. "Let's go to the library." He said, quickly pulling her out of the dining hall.

* * *

"I'm sorry about my sister," Luciana said as she and Loki walked through the halls of the palace. "She's always been like that."

"It's alright," Loki said. "I seem to owe her another apology now, though."

"And she owes you one," She said.

The two walked in silence for a while, the only sound being their footsteps and the distance chattering of servants. Loki looked over to the woman, who inspected the walls and floor as they walked, soaking in every detail.

"Do you like the palace?" Loki asked her, as she ran her hand along a wall.

Her response was a nod and she continued to stare at the castle in awe.

Loki sighed. "Do you still not forgive me?" He asked her.

"Not just yet," She told him, not taking her grey eyes off the wall.

"Well, perhaps you will once you see the library." He said stopping in front of a large golden set of double doors.

He opened the door and heard Luciana gasp behind him, and he smirked at her reaction.

Of course she had every right to be shocked, the library of the Asgardian palace was the grandest she had ever seen. It was a large circular room that had a seemingly endless array of leather bound books lined the walls on golden shelves that reached the ceiling. Various marble tables and chairs were placed around the room, standing perfectly on the matching marble flooring. And hanging from the ceiling was a grand chandelier that seemed to pour out diamonds as it lit up the grand room.

"Do you like it?" Loki asked stepping behind her as she walked in.

"Yes, I love it, it's beautiful!" She breathed before walking over to a bookshelf and running her hand along the various books, feeling the cool, smooth leather beneath her skin.

"I imagine you have quite the library yourself," Loki stated, trying to strike up a conversation.

"Mostly just spell books and history books," Luciana said, pulling out a leather bound poetry book. "Father doesn't allow us to read anything else."

"Why is that?" Loki asked, raising his eyebrow.

"Well, my father is a man who believes in facts, not opinions. He thinks knowledge should be valued over creativity, so there isn't much of this in our house." Luciana said gesturing to the poetry book she held.

"Ah, so have you never read a poetry book before?"

"No, I haven't."

"You didn't study it during your lessons?"

"No, like I've said, knowledge is valued higher over creativity," She explained. "My lessons consisted of learning enchantments and potions, and sometimes the history of the Nine Realms, but I never studied music or poetry."

"And do you agree with that?" Loki asked.

Luciana looked at him and raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"I mean," Loki said coming closer to her. "Do you agree with your father's thinking?"

"Sometimes, I mean, knowledge is a great aspect of this world, but sometimes I feel that a little creativity never killed anyone." Luciana said, looking back down to the page of the book.

Loki nodded and watched her as her eyes scanned the book, soaking in every word of what was a foreign genre to her. He pulled out a chair for her and she absent-mindedly sat down, mumbling a 'thank-you' as she intently read the book Loki had read at least three times before. Loki sat down beside her and watched her as she read, her pale fingers flipping the page every so often and her eyes continuously scanning the pages.

"Are you fond of the book?" Loki asked her, and she looked up at him.

"Very," She said smiling at him. "Thank you for showing me the library, it really is lovely."

"So I suppose that means you forgive me?" He asked raising and eyebrow and grinning.

Luciana smiled at him. "Yes, I forgive you...mostly."

Loki chuckled. "What do you mean 'mostly'?"

"Well, you promised me a tour of the castle, I've only seen the library." She said closing the book and putting it on the table.

"Well, I can't break a promise, now can I?" He said standing up and offering her his arm. "Come along, I'll show you every inch of the castle.

* * *

Loki took Luciana everywhere around the castle, the stables, the armoury, and even the royal's personal quarters. He explained everything about the castle, and she listened intently, greatly excited by the castles vast history. This slowly made Luciana forgive him, because she began to understand the person he was better.

"What was it like? Growing up here?" Luciana asked.

"I suppose I lived better than most Asgardians, and I suppose I still do. But I didn't really see it that way, to me the castle is just home." He explained, and then he went on to tell her about his childhood and growing up with his brother, including all the adventures they had with Lady Sif and the Warriors Three.

"But enough about my life, what was your childhood like?" He asked her.

"Well, I've spent my life living in the forest," She replied.

"You must have had _some_ adventures, I remember my brother and I had to travel miles to the forest just to slay some trolls."

"I've had some adventures, I suppose, but none as great as yours."

"Oh come on, there must be something."

"Well," Luciana began as she searched her memory for childhood memories. "I remember when me and my sister were younger,"

"How much younger?" Loki cut her off.

"You know, its impolite to ask a lady what her age is." Luciana teased.

"Ah, sorry," He chuckled. "An approximate age then?"

"The equivalent to a mortal's six years of age." She said.

"That's vague! That could be anywhere between two hundred and twenty-eight, and two hundred and sixty-six!" He teased.

"Oh hush, now where was I?"

"When you and your sister were younger..." He reminded her.

"Oh yes, well when we were younger, our father asked us to go gather some wild herbs for our alchemy lessons," She began. "So we went and we found the patch he told us about, but unfortunately a goblin had claimed it as his own and threatened to smite us if we didn't leave. So we tried to flee, of course, but then the goblin grabbed my sister and ran off with her deeper into the woods. I went after them and apparently the goblin was going to give my sister as a present to his son, and make her his wife."

Loki threw his head back and laughed, and Luciana giggled as well.

"Yes, she was quite terrified when she heard that, she started screaming at the top of her lungs. I tried to run back to my father but the goblins caught me before I could and they tied me from a tree and hung me over a pot of boiling water, they would have eaten me and married my sister if my father hadn't come to check up on us." She said reliving the memory before bursting into laughter.

She continued to laugh then let out a loud snort, and she immediately fell silent and put her hand up to her mouth, a blush forming on her cheeks. Loki chuckled at her reaction and she playfully glared at him.

"Stop it, it's not funny!" She said, her voice muffled by her hands.

"It actually was," He informed her, smiling. "So do you forgive me now? Or will I have to get on my knees?"

"Alright, I forgive you," She said. "Now that I've gotten to know you, I can tell that the little joke you played yesterday was not your best work."

Loki chuckled at her. He was pleased she had decided to forgive him, though he was sure his sly tongue had played a part in it. He was enjoying walking the castle with her, more than he really should have, actually. He couldn't understand what his interest in her was. Of course she was beautiful, smart, and able to defend herself when needed, but Sif had those traits as well, so that couldn't be it. Perhaps it was the fact she was a very skilled magician? After all, Loki was quite interested in the topic of magic, and he did well in it, being able to teleport and make duplicates of himself.

Loki concluded that that was his interest in her, her magical abilities. Odin was really the only person Loki knew that possessed a high amount of magic, other than himself. But even the both of their powers combined were no match for those of Luciana's family, who have been studying every aspect of the craft since the beginning of time. But even with this conclusion, he still felt like something was off.

He was broken out of his thoughts as he spotted the entrance to the garden. "Would you like to continue to tour the garden? I'm afraid I cut your last visit short." He asked her, turning his head to look at her.

"I would love to," She said and she followed him through the entrance, both unaware they were being watched by angry eyes.

* * *

**Okay so that's chapter three, and who do you think was watching Loki and Luciana?**

**By the way, I made a math equation that explains Loki and Luciana's age cause I wanted to. I imagine them to be around twenty-seven in mortal aging so if you multiply twenty-seven by thirty-eight you get one thousand and twenty-six. (27 x 38 = 1026 ) Which is roughly the age Loki would be around in the movie, since the Frost Giant and Asgardian war was a thousand years ago.**

**So in simple terms, every thirty-eight mortal years, they age one Asgardian year.  
I'm not saying they're exactly that age, it's just how I wrote it to be as accurate as possible. I hope none of you were confused.**

**Anyways review!**


	4. Chapter Four

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"What else did you do as a child?" Loki asked Luciana as the both sat down on a bench in the flowered garden.

"Mostly lessons, I didn't know many children my age at the time, and my sister wasn't fond of doing things that involved the forest or adventures." She explained.

"We've lived very different lives haven't we, then?" He asked.

"Yes," She nodded. "It would appear so, though I'm sure if I was lucky enough to have brothers like you and Thor I'd be dead."

Loki laughed at her statement and opened his mouth to speak.

"Luciana!" A female voice called before words could find their way out of Loki's mouth.

The two looked towards the entrance of the garden and saw Astrid rushing towards them, her cream coloured dress bouncing at every step.

"Yes, Mother?" Luciana asked as Astrid stopped in front of them.

"Where have the two of you been?" Astrid asked, seeming worried and angry. "You both missed lunch, and we've been looking for you everywhere!"

Loki stood up and cleared his throat. "My apologies, Lady Astrid, I was showing your daughter around the castle and time must have gotten away from me," He said smoothly, gesturing to Luciana. "I am completely at fault."

"Well," Astrid began. "I hope that you both had a nice time, but Luciana, will you come with me for a moment?" She asked, ignoring Loki.

Luciana nodded and stood up, and her mother grabbed her arm before she could say anything to Loki. Astrid dragged Luciana out of the garden and into an empty corridor of the castle, looking at her daughter with an irritated look.

Luciana sighed. "What have I done?"

"You were gone for five hours, _five _hours!" Astrid exclaimed. "No lady should be alone with a man for that long before marriage, I was beginning to think that the two of you had gone off and done...you know..." Astrid trailed off, making swirling gestures with her hand.

Luciana understood what this meant and her jaw dropped to the floor and her eyes grew wide. She tried to speak, but only small inaudible word-like sounds came out in stutters, due to her flabbergasted state.

"Mother," She said. "I would- we would- we could never- we just- it was-"

Astrid put up a hand and silenced her daughter. "I don't want to hear it, Luciana. Now, I'm not sure what the two of you did, but you are never to be alone with him, is that understood?"

"But, Mother, we didn't-"

"_Is that understood_?" Astrid said firmly, irritation flooding her voice.

Luciana knew this tone quite well, her mother and father both used it nearly daily, it was their controlling tone. Though they were loving parents, Cyrus and Astrid loved to control their daughters lives. They chose everything that their daughters did, and didn't like when any disobedience came from the two sisters. So one could imagine their great discomfort with their youngest daughter being alone with a man for five hours, not knowing where they were or what they were doing.

"Yes," Luciana said, giving in to her mother.

"Good, now go back to your chambers," Astrid ordered.

Luciana nodded and walked away from her mother, quickly making her way to her chambers.

* * *

"Mother's right, you know?" Viveca said as she brushed through her short brown hair. "You shouldn't have been alone with him for _that _long."

Luciana rolled her eyes as she straightened her silk nightgown. After dinner, Viveca had decided she wanted to continue their mother's lecture, and had been scolding her for the past hour and a half, trying Luciana's patience.

"You know, he only wants you to trust him so he can pull another trick," Viveca said, and Luciana looked at her elder sister in shock.

"Why do you think that?"

"Well, first he plays a horrible trick on the two of us, and then he suddenly decides he wants to whisk you away for five hours to do Valhalla know what!"

"Why does everyone assume me and Loki did something?" Luciana asked throwing up her hands, exasperated. "He was simply showing me around the castle and we lost track of time!"

"The way he was staring at you during dinner would say otherwise," Viveca said, putting her brush down and standing up from the dark wood vanity.

Luciana's eyebrows furrowed as her eyes followed her sister form to her bed. "What do you mean by that?"

Viveca let out an annoyed sigh as she slid under the covers of her bed. "I mean, he couldn't take his eyes off you during dinner, I can't believe you didn't notice!"

Luciana sighed and walked over to her own bed. "And what does that imply?" She asked as she slid under the covers.

"It implies that he obviously wants to bed you, unless he already has, then he simply wants more."

"He didn't bed me, Viveca!" Luciana exclaimed. "He didn't do anything even the slightest bit suggestive, and if he was staring at me during dinner, it wasn't because of the way you so foolishly think! Now, goodnight, _Viveca_!"

With an angry snap of her fingers, all the lights in the room vanished, and Luciana settled down into her bed with an annoyed huff.

Viveca scowled at the dark form of her sister and settled into her own bed, muttering bitterly as she closed her eyes.

* * *

Luciana awoke hours later to what sounded like a light knocking on the door.

She opened her eyes as she sat up in her bed, her eyebrows furrowed as she listened, only hearing silence and her sister's breathing. She began to lie back down, coming to the conclusion that she'd been hearing things, when the knocking began again, slightly louder.

Her eyebrows furrowing again, Luciana got out of her bed and tiptoed quickly and quietly to the door, wondering who would be knocking at the door at such an hour.  
She opened the door, and to her surprise, Loki stood outside of it, dressed in black silk nightwear.

"Loki?" She whispered. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see you," He whispered back. "I've been meaning to ask you something, but your sister whisked you away so quickly after dinner I didn't have the chance to."

Luciana stepped out of the bedroom and looked behind her shoulder at her sleeping sister before quietly shutting the door.

"What did you want to ask me?" She asked.

"I wanted to know whether or not you would go riding with me tomorrow." He replied.

"Riding?" Luciana asked. "Just you and me?"

Loki nodded and Luciana sighed sadly.

"Loki, I would love to, but my mother says I can't be alone with you," She explained.

Loki furrowed his eyebrows, looking both hurt and confused. "You won't be away for as long this time,"

"It's not that, it's just that my mother, and sister, seem to be under the impression that while we were gone we, well...you know..." She trailed off, mimicking the swirling hand gesture her mother did.

Loki looked confused for a moment, then his eyes widened in realization and his mouth opened slightly.

"I would never!" He said. "I mean, not that I would 'never'-" He corrected himself and she looked at him confused.

"What I meant to say is that it's not that I don't find you attractive, I do- wait, no- I mean-" Loki said before letting out an exasperated sigh.

How was one girl able to turn his silver tongue to lead simply by standing in front of him?

"Are you alright?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.

"What? Oh yes, I'm fine, just tired," He lied, he had been wide awake all night. "I'll have my brother accompany us, and perhaps you could try to convince your sister to come, maybe it'll convince her that nothing happened between the two of us."

Luciana nodded and smiled. "I'll try, but I doubt she'll come, but maybe Thor will be enough."

"Hopefully," Loki said. "You know, I didn't mean to get you into any trouble with your family,"

"Oh no, it's fine, I'm used to it," She said, chuckling. "They're just family being family."

"Still, I've seemed to have gotten off on the wrong foot with them, and now it's affecting you."

"Well, you got off on the wrong foot with me, and I forgave you, surprisingly. My family will do the same."

Loki half smiled and the two stood in silence for what seemed like an eternity.

"Well," Luciana finally said. "I best be off to bed. Goodnight, Loki."

She smiled at him once more before turning around and quietly opening the bedroom door, closing it after her figure disappeared through it.

"Goodnight," He breathed. "Luciana."

* * *

**Okay so that was short, but I think the ending was sweet.**

**PS. You can tell Loki is already taken with Luciana, can't you?**

**Anyways, please review.**


	5. Chapter Five

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"No, no, no, and _no_! I will not go riding with him! Are you mad?" Viveca angrily exclaimed.

Luciana sighed as she pulled on a dress. "No Viveca, I'm not, I just want to go riding."

"With _him_?"

"Yes with him, and, Viveca, we're not going alone, Thor will be coming as well."

"Oh that makes me feel _so _much better," Was Viveca's sarcastic response. "How do you know he's not in on it?"

"In on what?" Luciana tiredly asked as she put her hair in a braid.

"I don't maybe they want to play another trick on you, or they want to bed you, again!"

Luciana groaned in annoyance and turned to look at her sister. "Will you _please _let that thought go? Nothing happened, and nothing ever will happen!"

"And how do I know that?"

"If you don't believe me then just come, I'm sick of arguing!"

Viveca scowled for a moment before letting out an annoyed huff and walking over to her closet. "Fine, I'll come. But only to make sure that creep doesn't put his hands on you!"

"He's not a creep!"

Viveca rolled her eyes and pulled out a dusty rose coloured dress, inspecting the fabric before putting it back. Luciana watched impatiently as her sister went through the same process with all her dresses, ruling out each one and carelessly throwing it on the bed. Viveca groaned as she threw the last dress on the bed with the others.

"I have nothing to wear," She stated, narrowing her eyes at her younger sister.

Luciana only sighed and shrugged in response as she sat down on the couch.

Viveca eyed her sister for a moment before walking up to her. "Give me what you're wearing."

Luciana's eyebrows furrowed at her sister's demand. "What?"

"I said give me what you're wearing."

"Why?"

"Because it's much too revealing for you."

Luciana looked down at her dress. It was a long sleeveless, pale green dress that was very casual and simple. Of course it was different than her other dresses, with it being sleeveless and having a lower neckline, but it was summer, and Asgard was painfully hot during that season. In the forest, Luciana would have had the shade of the trees to keep her cool. But closer to the city, where there were no trees, she was condemned to walk through a never ending heat.

Because of the high temperature, Luciana had thought it logical to wear something that could help her withstand the blaring summer. She couldn't understand what Viveca thought was the matter with her dress. The neckline of the dress, though lower than usual, was still quite modest and showed little to no cleavage. And Luciana had seen women wear dresses with bare arms frequently around the palace. Why couldn't she?

And besides, Viveca had many dresses that were revealing. Like her blue sheer back evening gown, and of course her low cut pink dress. Why was Viveca suddenly so interested in her modesty? When she should really be considering her own.

"No, I'm not going to give you my dress, it's perfectly fine." Luciana stated, rising from the couch.

Viveca frowned. "Give it to me, Luciana!"

"No!"

"You give me that dress, or I'll give one of your corsets to Father's apprentices." Viveca threatened, smirking.

Luciana's jaw dropped. "You're seriously threatening to give Ronan and Harcourt my underwear?"

"Yes, I am," Viveca stated, nodding her head. "Unless you give me that dress to wear today, _and_ to keep."

Luciana frowned. "Why do you even want it?"

"I've already told you, it's too revealing for you."

"Oh please, there more to it than that, and I want to know."

Viveca frowned at her sister once more. "Fine, I think it's too revealing for an outing with Thor...and Loki."

"I should've known," Luciana said, shaking her head.

"Well, are you going to give me your dress or not?" Viveca impatiently asked.

Luciana let out an exasperated sigh. "Fine, you can have my dress on the grounds I get to wear, and keep, whatever I want of yours."

"Fine, take whatever you like, now give me that thing!"

Luciana took off the dress and irritated handed it over to her sister, who smiled smugly as Luciana walked over to her dresses.

Luciana shifted through the array of various coloured dresses, sometimes grimacing on how bright a yellow was, or how sickly a green was. After shifting through the many gowns, she found a dress that made her smirk evilly with a plan. She ran her hand over the fabric and inspected the gown before putting it on.

"You finished yet?" Viveca asked impatiently.

"Yes," Luciana said innocently as she turned around.

Viveca's jaw dropped to the floor at what her sister had chosen. On her younger sister was Viveca's purple summer gown, and it wasn't exactly the most modest dress Viveca owned. This gown was bare armed and had a lower neckline, like Luciana's green one, but the neckline on this one was even lower, and although it showed an acceptable amount of cleavage, the green one was much more tasteful.

Viveca was furious, and she knew that Luciana put it on just to make her angry.

"You only put that on to annoy me!" She accused, pointing a finger at Luciana. "When I got that and asked if you wanted to wear it, you said that it was much too cleavage and Mother and Father agreed with you!"

"Well now that I think about it, this is actually more modest than some of the dresses I've seen," Luciana said smirking.

"You said, and I quote, that that dress was 'at the very edge of modesty and scantiness'!"

"People change," Luciana said with a shrug, still smirking. "Now come on, we don't want to be late."

Luciana walked out the door and Viveca frowned and followed, slamming the door shut as she walked through it, muttering curses under her breath.

* * *

Luciana walked in the direction of the stables, an angry Viveca close behind.

Luciana was satisfied that she had made Viveca angry, but felt dreadfully uncomfortable wearing the dress. Her mother had once seen it on Viveca and it took everything she had not to throw a fit, the same goes for her father. She had hated the dress when Viveca had brought it home, because she, like Viveca said, thought it was at the edge of modesty and scantiness, and it wasn't the first thing someone would like you to wear at dinner party, let alone to go riding.

Luciana was heavily tempted to go back to her room and change, or even get one of the shawls she had brought to conceal herself. But she was more determined to prove to her sister that nothing was going on between her and Loki, and also just to annoy the heck out of her.

She finally made it to the stables and walked in, her eyes scanning around to find Calypso. She soon spotted the white mare in the stall beside her sister's brown mare, and she smiled and rushed towards her.

"Hello there, Calypso," She said, stroking the mare's head as Viveca walked over to a stable hand.

"Please get our horses ready for riding," She said and the stable hand nodded and went to fetch saddles and reins before walking over to Rosalind and Calypso.

"Ah, brother, here they are!" A male voice boomed.

The two sisters looked towards the entrance and saw Thor walking in with Loki close behind.

"Hello Loki, hello Thor," Luciana said with a smile.

"Hello Lady Luciana," Thor said, smiling. "It's wonderful to see you could make it, and of course you as well, Lady Viveca!"

Viveca only sent him a sarcastic smile before ripping Rosalind's reins out of the hands of the waiting stable hand.

"Well? Are we going to leave now?" She asked impatiently as she walked out of the stables with Rosalind, Thor soon following with his horse.

Luciana sighed and turned to Loki. "It's nice to see you, Loki,"

Loki smiled at her. "It's nice to see you as well, Luciana. You look lovely today." His eyes quickly scanned the dress, and they widened slightly before flickering back to her face and he swallowed to regain his posture.

Luciana smiled her thanks and took Calypso's reins from the stable hand and nodded gratefully, Loki doing the same.

"Your horse is lovely," Luciana complimented, looking at the brown coloured steed.

"As is yours," He said, looking at Calypso.

Luciana smiled and looked at Calypso, who nuzzled into her shoulder. Loki chuckled at this and opened his mouth to speak.

"Hey!" The irritated voice of Viveca cut him off. "You two going to get on your horses, or not?"

Luciana rolled her eyes and climbed onto Calypso, who suddenly ran forward and away from the stables as Luciana settled onto her.

"Calypso! No!" Luciana yelled as her mare continued to speed out of the courtyard and into the city.

"Here we go again!" Viveca yelled angrily before kicking Rosalind and making her run after the white mare.

Loki and Thor laughed and watched as the two horses ran at top speed.

"Luciana is quite lovely, Loki," Thor said. "I can see why you've taken such an interest in her."

"What?" Loki asked surprised, his eyes wide.

Thor only chuckled at his younger brother before kicking his steed and speeding off after the two girls.

"Wait, Thor, what do you mean by that?" Loki yelled after him. "Thor? Thor! Oh never mind..." He muttered before kicking his horse and running after the other three.

* * *

Calypso's hooves attacked the ground as she ran, and Luciana's braided hair was whipped wildly around by the wind.

Calypso hadn't stopped running for miles now, and Luciana could hear the other three horses running after the white mare and her. She heard hooves coming closer and she turned her head to see Loki coming up behind her, quickly gaining speed and matching her pace.

"You seem to be having trouble control your horse," He laughed.

"What was your first clue?" She teased, her head darting back and forth from the road ahead and her.

Loki laughed again and looked towards the road ahead.

"Looks like we're going to the forest," He yelled.

Luciana looked ahead and gasped. She started to pull on Calypso's reins to make her stop, but she didn't have to. Calypso had already stopped at the edge of the woods, knowing full well what was beyond these particular trees.

Loki stopped at the edge as well and looked at Luciana, his eyebrow's furrowed.

"Something the matter?" He asked her, concern in his voice.

Calypso began to back up underneath Luciana, who swallowed and let out a shaky breath. "We should, uh, turn back."

"Why?" Loki asked, seeming slightly amused.

"Luciana!" Viveca called, stopping beside her sister. "We need to turn back,"

"Why? It's just the forest, you live in one don't you?" Thor asked, stopping beside Loki.

"Not these ones," Viveca muttered.

"Well, I'm sure we won't get lost, let us explore this unknown wilderness!" He exclaimed and kicked his horse slightly to move on.

Loki stared at Luciana, noticing the deep concern in her face.

"No, wait, Thor," Loki said, grabbing his brother's arm to stop him. "What's in this forest?"

"Bad things," Luciana replied.

"What sort of 'bad things'?" Thor asked amused. "Goblins? Trolls? Ogres?"

"A dragon." Viveca said solemnly.

"A dragon?" Thor asked surprised. "Is that all?"

"You don't understand," Luciana said, shaking her head. "This isn't just any dragon. It's a magical one."

"More like a cursed one," Viveca corrected.

"Cursed? Why is it cursed?" Loki asked.

Luciana sighed. "Many years ago there was a powerful sorcerer, the most powerful actually, by the name of Lothar, and my father was an apprentice to him. Anyways, along with my father, he had another apprentice, Deitra. One day when Lothar entrusted a sacred spell book to my father, and not Deitra, she grew enraged and turned him into a fearsome dragon."

"My father fortunately defeated Deitra, and locked her away in the prison of Lothar's castle. But he was unable to reverse her enchantment on Lothar, and my father was forced to flee from the castle, leaving an enraged Deitra and a corrupt Lothar behind."

"What do you mean by 'corrupt'?" Loki asked Luciana.

"Well, Lothar doesn't remember anything now, not his past or his own identity. He thinks of himself now as a dragon, and will attack anyone who enters his castle."

"I'm sure I can handle that," Thor said proudly.

"Can you handle armies of lizard-men as well?" Viveca asked.

"What do you mean?" Thor asked.

"Just because Lothar is a dragon now, doesn't mean he hasn't got powers. He'll summon fleets of lizard-men to attack you once you enter, and only if you survive that will you be able to go against him." Viveca informed him.

"And what are lizard-men exactly?" Loki asked.

"They're lizards the size of men, and they might as well be men, they are ruthless warriors and can kill you in less than a second if they please. You can fight them, but you'll die trying." Luciana said.

"Yes, now come on! There might be some of those vile things around and I don't want to be caught up in that!" Viveca said, irritated.

She then kicked her horse and turned her around, running back towards the castle. Thor looked at Luciana and Loki for a moment before kicking his own horse and running after the girl.

Loki stared at Luciana. "Are you alright?" He asked, putting a hand on her back.

"Yes, it's just that this dragon is something I've been raised to fear, so I'm wary." She explained.

"Don't worry," He said, moving his hand from her back and grasping her hand. "It won't hurt you."

Luciana jumped at the cold temperature of his hand and looked at it for a moment, then her eyes flickered back to his.

"Brother, Luciana, are you not coming?" Thor's voice boomed.

Luciana let go of Loki's hand and smiled at him. "We better get going."

Loki nodded. "Race you back to the castle?" He asked, raising an eyebrow and smirking.

Luciana chuckled as Calypso began to run.

"You're on!"

* * *

**Okay so that is that, and now I will begin to write the next chapter!**

**Please, please, please review!**


	6. Chapter Six

**Okay so in this chapter, and the ones following, things are going to get very, very interesting.  
I know you guys can't see it, but there is an evil smirk planted on my face. Muwahahaha...**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story**

* * *

Over the course of the next two weeks, Loki and Luciana spent every day together doing whatever they could. Riding, reading, walking, and they even learned more about the other.

Luciana learned that Loki was a huge mischief maker, that his favorite colour was green, what he lacked in strength he made up for in intellect, and that for some reason his hands were always cold. She also learned he had quite the way with words, and that he had a good knowledge of magic, something that quickly became a favourite topic. She also learned quite a bit about his personality, he was sly, smart, mischievous, calm, sweet, and funny, but she could tell he had a jealous and devious side as well.

Loki also learned quite a lot about Luciana as well. She was smart, caring, stubborn, conservative, brave, and quite beautiful. He learned quickly that she had developed a taste for poetry, her favourite colour was blue, she liked winter over summer, preferred night over day, and had horrible anxiety issues.

The two enjoyed spending time together, and though they usually dragged Thor and Viveca wherever they went, but that didn't take away from the friendship the two quickly developed.

But tomorrow, Luciana and her family would be returning home, and Loki couldn't say that he wasn't saddened by this. It was nice to have someone is the castle that shared his knowledge and hobbies, sure Thor was great when Loki felt like hunting down a troll, but sometimes he just wanted to read, and Luciana was the perfect companion with that.

"Loki!" Frigga's voice called, breaking Loki out of his thought.

Loki turned around to see his mother and he smiled. "Yes, Mother?"

"I wish to speak to you," She stated, stopping beside Loki.

"About what?" Loki asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Are you saddened by Lady Luciana and her family's departure?" She asked.

"Well, of course," He said. "And you don't have to call her 'Lady', mother. She doesn't like the title."

"Ah, I see," She chuckled before sighing. "This reminds me of what happened with Lady Sigyn, you were quite taken with her as well."

Loki's eyebrows furrowed and he stared at his mother in disbelief. She was really bringing up Sigyn now? Loki had ended his courtship with her nearly a year ago, and his mother had never said anything about it for the longest time. Why now?

"What does Sigyn have to do with this?" Loki asked.

"Well the last time you spent this much time with a lady, you wanted to begin a courtship with her."

"What are you implying?"

"Oh Loki, my dear" Frigga said cupping his face with her hands. "You know perfectly well what I'm implying. You have taken a romantic interest in Luciana."

"What?" Loki asked shocked. "No, Mother, you are mistaken. I think of Luciana as a friend and nothing more, nothing less."

"Oh really? Then why do I find you watching her from behind a pillar?" She asked teasingly, removing her hands from his face.

Loki became flustered. "I was just, uh-"

"Oh Loki, you have one of the greatest silver tongues, yet you can hardy keep it when she enters your mind." She said, chuckling.

Frigga was right, whenever Loki and Luciana were not together, Loki, to his confusion and slight horror, found himself watching her like some sort of stalker. He'd often make himself invisible and walk beside her through the garden as she listened to her mother's many speeches, or he'd even conceal himself behind a pillar or wall and watch from afar. Loki knew that this was wrong, and quite abnormal, but he couldn't keep himself from doing it. He even got to the point where he began researching love potions and enchantments to see if one was placed upon him, but none matched his behaviour.

"Have I been that obvious?" Loki asked quietly.

"Only to me, after all, I am your mother." She chuckled. "And a mother knows when her son is falling in love."

There was silence between the two before Loki sighed and looked down at his feet. "I don't think its love,"

"Why not?"

"Because you cannot fall in love with someone in two weeks, it's impossible and unrealistic."

Frigga sighed and put a finger on her son's heart.

"Loki," She said. "My mother once told me something, and now I will tell you. Love is a labyrinth. It has many twists and turns, dangers and treasures, and it's hard to escape, and some never do. For what seems like forever, you're alone in the maze, your heart condemned to do nothing but wander. But there is always someone else, who's heart is just as lost as yours. And though it may take time, you'll one day find this person, and you'll both be forever trapped in the labyrinth, only having the other as company until your dying breath."

"But if you don't accept it when its standing right in front of you, you may never find it again, and you'll be alone. All your love put to waste, and your heart never truly given. Loki, it's alright to be confused, everyone is, but you must not bottle it up and pretend it doesn't exist. Love may not be the most pleasant feeling at first, but that's because it comes so quickly and is so unclear that it makes you want to scream. Two weeks may not seem like a long time, Loki, but it's long enough for love. I saw the way you looked at her the first day you met, it's the same way I look at your father. Its love. Don't deny it any longer, Loki, you know exactly what you feel."

Loki sighed at his mother. She was right, about everything.

"Are you sure it's possible?" He asked her.

"I fell in love with your father the minute I laid eyes on him, it is possible for you to do the same." She responded.

Loki sighed. "She's perfect, Mother. She's intelligent, beautiful, kind, stubborn, caring, and brave. I could go on forever as to why she's perfect. And that dress she wore when we went riding, oh, that damn dress! It's as if she wants to drive me mad! I've never felt so powerless in my emotions, I don't even have a say in what I feel. I'm so unlike myself. I've been lying awake at night, just trying to figure out how I was able to fall in love with her, but I never can. I never felt this way with Sigyn, I don't know what's happening to me! It's driven me to insanity, mother, because I still don't know how or why it happened!" He exclaimed.

Frigga cupped his face with her hands once more and stood on her toes to kiss his forehead. "You've just said it." She said. "She's intelligent, beautiful, kind, stubborn, caring, brave, and perfect. That's why you fell in love with her, Loki, because she's simply her. But how you fell in love, well no one can ever truly answer that, they can only say you fell in love, and that's that."

Loki sighed once more and nodded. "You're right, as always."

Frigga chuckled and smiled. "Now, I want you to say you love her. And I want you to use that silver tongue of yours clear and proud as you say it, looking at me straight in the eye." She teased.

Loki chuckled and looked into her eyes. "I love her," He stated, his voice firm and clear.

"Good," Frigga said happily. "Now, if you will be the dear son I know you are, you can escort me back to my chambers."

Loki laughed and took his mother's arm as he walked away with her.

Once they were out of earshot, a figure stepped out of the shadows, having heard everything that was said between the mother and son.

"Oh no, this won't do," They said evilly. "This won't do at all."

* * *

**Okay sorry it's short, but I personally think it's one of the best things I've ever written.  
Oh and don't worry, Luciana and Loki won't be getting together until some more chapters and events have past, I'm not making this story go _that _fast.**

**Anyways review!**


	7. Chapter Seven

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"I'll miss you when I leave," Luciana said to Loki as she stroked Calypso's head.

"Do you think you'll ever return to the castle?" He asked her hopefully.

"Perhaps," She replied with a shrug. "My father has talked about us returning, though nothing is set in stone."

"Well, as a parting gift," He began as he conjured something out of midair then handed it to her. "The poetry book you read that day, do you remember?"

Luciana looked at the book he handed her. "Yes, I remember," She said smiling, before handing the book back to him. "But I can't take this from you."

"Oh no really, I insist you take it."

"Are you sure?"

He smiled and pushed the book closer to her. "It's yours."

She smiled at him before putting her arms around his neck and pulling him in for a hug. "Thank you, it's wonderful."

Loki smiled and wrapped his arms around her. "You're welcome."

"Luciana, dear, we're leaving now!" The two heard Astrid call.

Luciana pulled out of the embrace, and Loki couldn't help but frown slightly. "I'll miss you." He said.

"I'll miss you too." She said, smiling sadly.

Loki took her hand and brought it up to his lips, granting it a light kiss. "Farewell, Luciana."

"Farewell, Loki." She said taking her hand back and climbing onto Calypso.

She flicked the reins and Calypso starting trotting off, following the other three horses away from the castle. Luciana looked over her shoulder and back at Loki, who sent her a sad smile and a wave, to which she returned before flicking Calypso's reins and speeding to catch up with her family.

Loki sighed as he watched her leave, before sadly placing his hands behind him and walking back into the castle.

* * *

"Now that we've returned, we have lots of work to get done, girls." Cyrus said to Luciana and Viveca.

It had been one day since the family of magicians had returned to their home in the woods, and already Cyrus was readying his daughters for more lessons.

"I want the two of you to go with Ronan and Harcourt deeper into the forest and find me sage. I need for their alchemy lesson." He told them.

"Why can't they go themselves?" Viveca asked, pulling on a cloak.

"Because I don't trust them alone. Now, have you got everything you'll need if you run into trouble?" He asked.

Luciana nodded and Viveca scoffed. "Please, father, we aren't three hundred anymore!"

"Yes, I know. My daughters are grown up now and don't need me to remind them not to get married to goblins!"

"Excuse me, _nearly_ married to goblins," Viveca corrected. "And I got out of it!"

"Yes, after _I _scared them off." Cyrus said, earning a frown from Viveca.

"Come on, Viveca," Luciana said pulling her sister's arm. "Ronan and Harcourt are already outside waiting, let's go."

Luciana pulled her out of the house and towards Ronan and Harcourt.

"Hello, Ronan. Hello, Harcourt." Luciana said to the two men.

Ronan was a muscular man, who had short, blonde hair and fair skin. Harcourt, on the other hand, had a thin build had hair that was a shade of red. The two were brothers, Ronan being the oldest, though at first one wouldn't see it unless they took the time to inspect them closer. They were the sons of Malden Orrickson, who was a wizard once, but he gave up the title following the magician's return to Asgard.

Despite Malden being an exceptionally powerful wizard, specializing in fire magic, his sons were not as talented. They were quite rude and careless, and they didn't seem to care much for the craft of magic and instead favoured swords and axes as their weapons. The only reason they had even traveled to Cyrus was because their father forced them to, when they much would have rather have stayed in Asgard and woo the many Asgardian ladies with their fighting talents.

"Hello," Harcourt said.

"Hello." Ronan repeated.

"Well, shall we be off? I want to get what we need as soon as possible so I don't get lost in the forest with you two!" Viveca snapped impatiently.

"Fine, we'll go. You know, you could be less of a princess sometimes!" Ronan exclaimed before walking through the trees.

"He's right, no man wants to marry a complete lunatic!" Harcourt agreed, sniggering.

Luciana brought a hand up to her forehead and shut her eyes, awaiting her sister's explosion.

"Lunatic?" Viveca exclaimed. "I'll have the both of you know that many of the guards found me _quite _attractive back at the palace!"

"We're they blind or deaf?" Ronan asked, joining his brother's snickering.

"You horrid cads! I swear the only person more insensitive than you is Loki!" Viveca exclaimed.

"Don't bring his name into this!" Luciana said, glaring at her sister.

"Well its true!" Viveca exclaimed.

"It was one joke, Viveca! Besides it wasn't even his best," Luciana defended, stopping in her tracks.

"Listen to yourself, Luciana! You're defending a man who lies, plays tricks, and has no respect to anyone!" Viveca said, stopping as well.

"That's not true, he does have respect for others, he's just a mischief maker!"

"No he's rude, a liar, a trickster, and Valhalla knows what else!"

"If you actually talked to him instead of ignoring or snapping at him, you'll know he's perfectly decent!"

"Oh please, if I ever talked to that man the way you do, I'd shoot myself in the head with an arrow!"

"Oh stop being so melodramatic!"

"I'm not melodramatic! I'm just stating that-"

"Excuse me!" Ronan shouted, cutting the girls off from their argument.

"While you two were at each other's throats, Harcourt and I got the sage." Ronan said, handing Luciana the basket filled with herbs.

"Oh, so you did," Luciana said, embarrassed.

"Good, now we can leave!" Viveca exclaimed before storming off in the direction of the house.

Luciana sighed as Ronan and Harcourt followed her, and she looked into the herb filled basket.

"This isn't sage," She muttered before emptying the basket on the forest floor and walking further into the forest, and she groaned as she felt a raindrop land on her cheek, more soon following

She was going to be awhile.

* * *

It was three hours before Luciana walked through the front door, her clothes soaking wet and the sage drenched in water.

"Luciana, is that you?" She heard her mother call as she hung up her cloak.

"Yes, mother." She replied.

Astrid soon rushed into the front room, a scowl on her face.

"Where have you been? Everyone else came back hours ago! And I even sent Ronan and Harcourt back to look for you, but they couldn't find you!" Astrid exclaimed.

"I had to go deeper into the forest to find the sage," Luciana said, handing her mother the basket of herbs.

"Ronan and Harcourt said they found the sage."

"It was rosemary." Luciana said shaking her head.

"How did they confuse rosemary with sage?" Astrid asked.

Luciana shrugged at her mother. "Ask them."

Astrid sighed. "I'll deal with them later, just come to the dining room, we have a guest."

Astrid then walked away to the dining room and Luciana's eyebrows furrowed. Who could be here?

She walked into the dining room and saw Cyrus, Astrid, Viveca, Harcourt, and Ronan, sitting around the long wooden dining room table, along with another man who was speaking to Cyrus.

Cyrus looked at Luciana and smiled. "Ah, Luciana! We were afraid something bad had happened. You're just in time to meet Ramsay, my new apprentice."

Luciana and Ramsay looked at each other. Ramsay was a blonde man with fair skin and blue eyes, and he seemed as tall as Cyrus even sitting down.

"Hello, Luciana. It's nice to meet you," He said. "Your father has spoken quite highly of you."

"Nice to meet you as well," She replied, sitting beside Viveca and across from him.

"So you were saying you were briefly taught magic by your father?" Cyrus asked him.

"Yes, just simple things really; fire spells and light enchantments. I came here hoping to expand my abilities." He responded.

"And your father is?" Cyrus asked.

"Talon Garronson."

"Ah, so you're Talon's boy? I knew him once and I faintly remember hearing about you and your siblings. Five isn't it?" Cyrus asked.

"Yes, my brothers Magus, Varick, and Edmar. And my sisters Aceline and Temira. I'm the oldest though." Ramsay said, taking a bite of his chicken.

"Oh my, your poor mother!" Astrid said, placing her hand on her heart. "I don't know how I could handle six children, I could hardly handle these two!" She made a gesture to the sisters.

The rest of dinner consisted of Astrid and Cyrus asking Ramsay various questions about his life, skills, interests, and everything really. As the two did this Harcourt and Ronan simply chatted quietly amongst themselves, and Luciana and Viveca merely ate in silence and listened to them, occasionally rolling their eyes when one said something idiotic.

* * *

"Why couldn't more girls come to be father's apprentices?" Viveca asked, pacing her sister's room. "I've had enough of boys,"

"Well most girls are back in Asgard," Luciana reminded as she read her poetry book in her bed. "And they tend to get married as soon as they are of proper age, and they can't just pack up and leave their new husbands to come here for a couple years."

"I suppose you're right," Viveca said with a sigh, smoothing out her dress. "Do you remember Geneva, though? She came here."

"Yes, but she wasn't put into an arranged marriage since she was the youngest of her _seven _sisters, so she had the years to come here and train." Luciana reminded her.

Viveca only shrugged and sat down on Luciana's bed. "What are you reading?"

"Poetry."

Viveca gasped. "You took that from the castle and brought it all the way here?"

"No," Luciana said. "Loki gave it to me."

"Well he shouldn't just give you things like that! People will get the wrong impression!"

"What people? Viveca, you seem to think that we're one of the highest families of Asgard and have some sort of reputation to uphold! You know that the people of Asgard could care less what we do as long as it doesn't involve them."

"But still, you shouldn't have taken it."

"I tried to give it back but he insisted. It was just a parting gift, Viveca, let it go."

Viveca scowled at her younger sister before standing from the bed and marching out of the room, leaving Luciana to roll her eyes and put away her book before falling into a deep slumber.

* * *

A figure walked down the hall of the home of the Cyrus clan and towards Cyrus' study, a ball of green light guiding their way through the dark house.

They stopped at a dark wood door and smirked, knocking lightly on it.

"Yes, come in." Cyrus' voice called and they opened the door.

"Hello," They said stepping into the study, making the green light disappear.

"Oh, well," Cyrus said surprised, placing his hands in front of him on the desk, "What brings you here at this hour?"

They sat down on the chair in front of the desk.

"I have something I'd like to...discuss with you."

* * *

**Okay so, I've left you with a wonderful cliffhanger.**

**I also wanted to take the time to thank you all for your support of this story. I've going through a difficult time in my life right now, and waking up to a new review, favourite, or follow genuinely makes me smile. So, thank you so much, you guys are amazing!**

**Please review!**


	8. Chapter Eight

**Sorry for the boring chapter, but I needed one to put into the story before the next one so that it won't seem like I'm jumping around a lot with the story.**

**PS. Sorry there's no Loki, or Thor, or really anyone related to Thor in this chapter.**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story**

* * *

"Are you certain that this is a good idea, Cyrus?" Astrid asked her husband. "Viveca is the oldest, shouldn't she be-"

"Yes, I know. But Viveca thinks that this arrangement would be better suited for Luciana, and I agree with her." He told his wife.

"I suppose," She sighed. "Do you think they'll agree to it?"

"I'm nearly certain."

"Well, alright. What harm could it cause anyway to ask?"

"None, dear." Cyrus told his wife, straightening his cloak.

Luciana walked into the front room as he did this. "I can't believe the two of you!" She said with a smile. "Leaving after only being home two days? Tired of cooking for seven, mother?"

"Now, dear, you know I love to cook," She said in mock seriousness. "But your father and I have business to attend to in Asgard, and we must hurry if we want to be there by nightfall."

"Well I wish you well on your journey," Luciana said hugging her mother and father.

"Viveca!" Her mother called after pulling away. "We're leaving now, are you coming to see us off?"

"Coming!" Viveca's voice rang out from the library, before Viveca herself appeared and rushed to her parents.

"Farewell," She said, giving each a hug.

"Farewell," Her mother said. "Now, make sure the boys don't get into anything, and make sure they do their lessons, oh and their chores. And don't think that just because the both of you are in charge you can make them do yours, oh and remember to do yours as well-"

Cyrus sighed and chuckled. "Come along, dear."

"I'm not finished yet," She snapped as Cyrus pulled on her arm. "Only cook the meals I've written down on the piece of parchment I've left in the kitchen, don't leave the forest, and make sure the boys don't leave the forest."

"Dear, we have to leave," Cyrus said, ushering her out the door and quickly shutting it behind him before his wife could add anything else.

The two sisters stood there for awhile before Luciana sighed. "Well, let's get to the chores."

Luciana walked towards the kitchen and laughed as Viveca loudly groaned.

* * *

"Okay, so it says here to add two pinches of rosemary into the cauldron. Can you do that, Ramsay?" Luciana asked, looking up from an alchemy book and at her blonde haired companion.

"Yes," He said, before reaching over to grab two pinches of the herb.

Luciana nodded and looked back down at the alchemy book.

Since her father was away, it was Luciana's job to guide Ramsay through the beginner lessons, and things were going quite well. Ramsay seemed very interested in the magic craft, and paid attention when she explained something, unlike Ronan and Harcourt, who simply just nodded and lost themselves in their own thoughts. Luciana found it less trying to her patience to teach Ramsay, and had left poor Viveca to deal with the Maldensons alone.

"What next?" Ramsay asked.

"Oh, uh, stir it five times counter-clockwise, then leave it on high for ten minutes." She replied, reading the text.

"Stir it five times counter-clockwise...then leave it on high for ten minutes..." He muttered as he did the actions. "Done?"

"Done," She replied. "Now we just have to wait ten minutes and your laughter potion should be done."

"Perfect," He said, walking over to an ingredient shelf and inspecting the array of bottles. "So when do you think I'll be able to work with things like, snake skin or goblin teeth?"

"Well, it could take a couple months, but you seem to be doing quite well. If you keep it up you'll be up to Ronan and Harcourt's level in no time." She responded, putting the book on the bookshelf.

"What about yours and Viveca's?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"That will be hard to reach," She said. "We've been learning magic for about nine-hundred years, so I don't expect you to get up to that level for awhile."

"But your father can get me there, right?"

"Of course, but magic isn't just being taught, you have to learn on your own as well. You have to be willing to try different spells, research every part of magical history that isn't taught, and you have to make your own spell casting techniques, whether with wand, staff, or hand. You must always be willing to try, to create, to learn, because you can't be taught everything."

"That's very wise."

"Thank you,"

"Did you say that?"

"Yes, it's something I made up when I was young, because I wanted to have a saying, like all the great magicians, like my father." She said smiling.

"What's your father's saying?" He asked.

"'Don't be an idiot.'" She said, chuckling.

Ramsay chuckled as well and then looked at the cauldron. "Do you think it's done?"

"Let's see," She responded with a shrug.

Ramsay walked over to the cauldron and ladled out yellow coloured liquid into a phial.

"Alright, now what do I do?" He asked, putting a cork on the phial.

"We get a test subject," She said before walking to the door and opening it. "Ronan, will you come to the potion room, please?" She called up the stairs.

"Which one?" A male voice called back.

"The one with the extra cauldron!" She said.

Soon footsteps were heard coming down the stone staircase and Ronan appeared at the door.

"Yes, what is it?" He asked Luciana.

"I need you to test out Ramsay's laughing potion," She said gesturing to Ramsay.

"No, what if its toxic?" He asked.

"I guided him through the whole thing, Ronan, nothing will happen." She sighed before pulling him into the room.

She took the phial from Ramsay and handed it to Ronan, who eyed the glass warily.

"And your sure nothing will happen?" He asked Luciana, who nodded.

"You made this properly?" He asked Ramsay, who nodded as well.

"Fine," Ronan said, taking the cork off the bottle. "Valhalla help me." He said before raising the phial to his lips and drinking the liquid.

Luciana and Ramsay eyed Ronan as he put the phial back on the table, and holding his stomach.

"Well?" Ramsay asked.

Suddenly Ronan burst into hysterical laughter, making Luciana and Ramsay jump.

"That-That tasted h-horrible! Luc-Luciana, h-h-how could you make me drink that?" He asked through laughs.

"Well it works!" Luciana said happily to Ramsay before she wrote something on a piece of parchment.

"You can go now, Ronan." She said to the man who was still laughing.

Ronan nodded and walked out of the room, still laughing.

"Now," Luciana said. "On to the forgetfulness potion."

* * *

"Are you sure this is what you want for her, Cyrus?" A white haired man asked, his hands clasped in front of him.

"Yes, it's exactly what I want. Of course, my hopes will have to be proven, first." Cyrus responded.

"Well, this current arrangement should tell us, shouldn't it?" The man asked.

"Yes, it should. And I will see to this matter further when I return."

"Very well, are you positive you want this for her, though?"

"Quite."

"So its decided then?" The man asked.

"Oh yes," Cyrus said. "It's decided.

* * *

**Short chapter, wonderful cliffhanger!**

**Review!**


	9. Chapter Nine

**Okay so this chapter is made with writers block because I obviously am having a hard time, so please forgive me.**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story**

* * *

"You want to invite Cyrus and his family back to the palace?" Odin asked Loki.

"Yes, I would," Loki responded, nodding as he put his hands behind his back.

"And why, if I might ask?"

"Well," Loki began. "It would give us a chance to better understand Cyrus' family and himself, of course. And it will give me a chance to hopefully apologize to Lady Viveca and start anew with her. Besides father, could you really discuss things with Cyrus properly when you and him were busy making sure Viveca and I didn't murder each other? That's why, in the best interest for our relationship with the Cyrus clan, I suggest we invite them to the palace once more."

Frigga, who was sitting in an armchair nearby, couldn't help but smile at Loki's lie. She knew exactly what Loki _really_ wanted, and she intended to give him that.

"I will consider it, Loki," Odin said. "But Cyrus is a very busy man, he has two apprentices he must keep up with and can't be torn away from their training."

"I understand," Loki said. "Goodnight father, mother."

He smiled at the both of them before walking out the door and closing it.

Frigga smiled and looked at her husband. "He's right you know, this could be a wonderful opportunity for us to get to know Cyrus and his family better."

"I know, but as I've said, Cyrus is a very busy man." Odin replied.

"But his daughters aren't," Frigga said.

Odin raised an eyebrow and looked at his wife. "What are you implying?"

Frigga sighed. "How about we just invite his daughters to the palace? That Cyrus and Astrid can continue on with the apprentices, and we can still get to know the family better."

Odin pondered over this for a moment before sighing. "I suppose I could write Cyrus and ask, but I don't guarantee him agreeing to it. He's a brilliant man, but he's quite stubborn."

Frigga only nodded and smiled as she watched her husband write the letter.

Loki was in for a surprise.

* * *

"'I hope you will allow your daughters to come visit the palace once more in your place, I do not wish to tear you away from your work, Cyrus. Please write back with your response at your earliest convenience. Sincerely, Odin Allfather, King of Asgard.'" Cyrus read the last part of the letter to his wife, who sat on an armchair in his study.

"Perhaps we should send the girls there, Cyrus," Astrid said, sipping the cup of tea she had in her hands. "It would give us a chance to further think the arrangement we've made."

"Your right, Astrid," Cyrus agreed. "It is the perfect opportunity, but you know Viveca doesn't get on well with Loki, she won't want to go."

"Well, maybe she won't have to. After all, it's only Luciana that needs to be relocated for a bit."

"I'll write Odin and tell him then. Only Luciana will be going." Cyrus announced before pulling out a sheet of parchment and writing.

Astrid smiled as she sipped her tea. Everything was falling into place.

Perfectly.

* * *

"So I'll be going to the palace? Alone? For an entire month?" Luciana asked her mother as she sat on the edge of her bed, absent-mindedly playing with her nightgown.

It had been one week since Cyrus had written Odin back, and they arranged for Luciana to stay at the castle for a month, something which Luciana was both shocked yet pleased about.

"Yes, dear," Astrid nodded. "The Allfather is sending a carriage to escort you there. It will be here in the morning, so I'll help you pack."

Astrid walked over to her daughter's closet and pulled out a trunk from the bottom. Luciana got off her bed and walked towards her closet as well, picking out a dress and folding it before dropping it into the trunk.

"Isn't this your sister's?" Astrid asked, pulling out the purple low-cut dress.

Luciana blushed and quickly grabbed it from her mother. "Yes, we traded. My green dress for this one." She said folding the dress and throwing it into the trunk.

Astrid eyed her daughter and Luciana swallowed under her mother's accusing gaze.

"It completely innocent, mother, I wore it because it was hot at the castle and I wasn't used to it." Luciana said somewhat truthfully. She was hot that day at the castle, but she left out the part about wanting to irritate Viveca to high Valhalla and low hell.

"Yes, it was quite hot there, wasn't it?" Astrid agreed, folding up some silk nightgowns and placing them in the trunk.

"Very."

The mother and daughter continued to pack the trunk, Astrid sometimes stopping to admire a dress or shoe.

"Well, we're done," Astrid said, closing the trunk. "You better get to bed if you want to be up early tomorrow."

Luciana nodded and Astrid smiled before kissing her daughter on the cheek.

"Goodnight, dear, sleep well." She said quietly.

Luciana's eyebrows furrowed as she noticed a tear sliding down her mother's cheek.

"Mother? Mother, are you crying?" She asked, shocked and confused.

Astrid quickly wiped the tear away and let out a breathless laugh. "Oh, yes, I am. It's just that you've never left home for this long, and you're going alone, and I've realized now that your growing up. Soon you'll be married and having children, and here I'm thinking you're just my baby girl!"

"Mother, oh mother," Luciana said, pulling her mother in for a hug. "I won't be getting married for a long time, and I'll always be your daughter, no matter how old I am."

Astrid only nodded as she hugged her youngest child.

"You know," Luciana said quietly, pulling away from her mother. "I don't have to go to the castle, I can stay here."

"No," Astrid protested, shaking her head. "Go, dear, I'll be alright."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I am, dear. Now, sleep well."

Luciana nodded as her mother left the room, flashing her one last smile as she closed the door, leaving Luciana alone in her chambers.

* * *

"It's time to wake up, dear. The carriage will be here soon. Make sure you take a bath!" Astrid's voice called as she knocked on her daughters door.

"Alright," Luciana tiredly called, sitting up in her bed.

Luciana hadn't slept at all last night, her mind was too preoccupied with her mother's tears. Why did her mother think she was going to get married soon? Viveca was the oldest, she would be married first, and then Luciana would follow some years later. But that was a long way away, for her father and mother had found no one suitable for the two sisters, and it didn't seem as if that would change anytime soon.

Luciana sighed and got out of her bed, stretching her arms over her head as she walked over to the dark wood closet.

She pulled out the last dress in the closet and folded it over her arm. She walked over to a door on the far corner of her room, and turned the silver knob. The door opened to a small wash chamber with smooth stone flooring and cobblestone walls, giving the room a dungeon-like feel. She walked over to a small area that was concealed by dark blue curtains and pulled them back, revealing a bath.

She waved her hand and the sound of running water filled the room as she pulled off her nightgown, wincing as the fabric caught on her long hair. She took off her undergarments and then placed her foot in the now filled bathtub before manoeuvring her body fully into the tub.

She sighed contently as the warm water hit her skin, and she rubbed her arms under the water. She then snapped her fingers and a bottle of bath oil hovered above her and poured into the bath. She inhaled deeply as the oils aroma met her nose. Crisp linen, white lilies, and soft powder, her favourite scent. She had various bath oils, soaps, and perfumes, of this scent, and one could always tell she had been somewhere when they smelt the pleasant aroma.

She then took a deep breath and clamped her eyes shut before she brought her head under the water. She stayed like that for a moment before rising to the surface, gasping for air as she shook her head.

"Dear, are you almost done?" Astrid's voice called out.

Luciana sighed and got out of the bathtub, conjuring a towel and a bathrobe.

"Yes, I'm done!" She said as she wiped herself dry and put the bathrobe around her body.

"Well, are you decent?" Astrid, her voice now outside the wash chambers.

"Yes."

Astrid opened the door and stepped in.

"Well, you're not ready and the carriage will be here any minute." The woman exclaimed as she conjured a towel and dried her daughters hair.

"What about breakfast?" Luciana asked.

"You'll have to have something at the palace, now put on your clothes so I can do your hair." Astrid demanded, throwing her daughter her undergarments and dress.

Luciana nodded and quickly did as she was told as she walked towards the vanity where her mother now stood with a hairbrush. She sat down at the vanity and adjusted her dress before she suddenly yelped in pain as her mother brushed through a knot.

"This is why I hate it when you put your hair in a braid," Astrid said, sighing as she brushed. "It creates knots."

"But it's easier- ouch, for me- ow! To put my hair like that- ouch, when I'm in the potion room."

"What about a plain ponytail or bun, perhaps? It's much more elegant and will cause your hair less damage."

"Fine."

Astrid smiled as she put a silver clip in the back of her daughter's hair, holding the black hair away from her face.

"There, just as always, perfect," Astrid smiled as she inspected her daughter in the mirror.

Luciana gave a half smile to her reflection then heard a knock at the door.

"Come in," She called and turned her head to the door.

Cyrus appeared and smiled at his daughter. "The carriage is here."

"Oh just in time!" Astrid said happily. "Dear, you get Luciana's trunk, and Luciana you can go downstairs and greet them."

Luciana nodded and went to get up. "Wait!" Her mother exclaimed, making Luciana freeze.

"You forgot your shoes," Astrid chuckled and handed the footwear to her daughter.

Luciana smiled and laughed as she slipped on the footwear, then she walked out the door of her room. She went down the hall and stopped at the top of the spiral staircase, looking down into the main hall.

Standing there was a man she knew quite well.

"Loki?" She asked surprised, going down the stairs. "What are you doing here?"

Loki looked up at her and smiled as she walked towards him. "I wanted to see you, so I convinced my father to let me come along to pick you up."

Luciana smiled and put her arms around his neck, pulling him for a hug. "Well, I'm glad you came."

Loki hugged her back and smiled wider, her bath oil's pleasant aroma reaching his nose.

Cyrus and Astrid walked down the stairs as the two broke away from their embrace. "Oh hello, Loki," Astrid said. "Luciana, are you ready?"

Luciana nodded her reply as she took her trunk from her father then kissed him on the cheek.

"Oh here," Loki said, taking the trunk from Luciana. "I'll handle that."

"Thank you, Loki." Luciana smiled at him.

"Well, you two best be off," Astrid said before hugging her daughter. "Take care."

"I will, I'll miss the both of you. Tell Viveca I said goodbye!" Luciana said as she followed Loki out the door.

* * *

As Loki and Luciana stepped into the carriage, they were immensely unaware that they were being watched by a shadowy figure standing at the tower window. The unseen figure glared at the prince, who disappeared into the carriage behind Luciana.

"Oh Loki," The figure sighed. "If you think you're going to be able to win Luciana's heart,"

The figure stepped into the light and revealed the smirking face of Viveca, who had quite the elaborate plan brewing about in her mind.

"You're wrong."

* * *

**I am so sorry this chapter was like one of the worst things I have ever written, but I have writers block.  
On the plus side I gave the story a villain, the lovely, and incredibly fun to write, Viveca!**

**Please review!**

**PS. Sorry if Frigga seemed OOC in this chapter. It's just that I've kinda imagined her as the loving, wise mother that sometimes gets involved with your love life. So that's how I wrote her for this chapter, sorry if you guys don't like my version of her. I personally don't think she's _that _OOC from the movie Frigga because, well, we didn't see a lot of the movie Frigga, so it's easy to create your own version of her.**

**Okay, I'm rambling which means I need to shut up...Bye.**


	10. Chapter Ten

**I think I'm getting over my writers block, now I just want the story to go a bit slower so I can make it longer and more detailed.**

**Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"I've never rode in anything grander than this." Luciana said, marveling at the inside of the golden carriage.

The carriage was a rectangular structure made out of, of course, gold, and it was pulled by two majestic white horses. And on the inside, it could seat six people easily on the red velvet cushions, where Loki and Luciana now sat.

"Well, now that you're a friend of the royal family you should get used to it." Loki said, smiling.

Luciana smiled back at him before letting out yawn and covering her mouth.

"Tired, are we?" Loki asked, amused.

"Very," Luciana nodded. "I didn't sleep at all last night."

"Why?" He asked, sounding concerned.

She sighed and looked at him. "It's my mother, last night she was upset that I'm growing up, and she said that I'm going to get married and have children soon. But it seems like she's forgetting that Viveca has to get married too, and she's treating me like I'm the only child and I'm going to leave her soon."

"Maybe that's it," Loki said shrugging.

Luciana raised an eyebrow at her companion. "What do you mean?"

"Perhaps your father and your mother are getting ready to marry off Viveca, and she knows you're not far behind. So perhaps she's upset about possibly losing her daughters, after all, you've been under her care for quite awhile." Loki said.

"Very wise," Luciana said, smiling.

"Thank you."

"You know, you're probably right."

"I'm always right," He teased.

"Don't get arrogant!" She said playfully hitting him in the stomach, causing a chuckle from Loki.

"Anyways, as I was saying," She began. "You're probably right, after Viveca is married they'll find me a husband, then they'll lose me and only be able to hope for grandchildren."

Luciana then let out another yawn and leaned on the side of the carriage, her eyes drooping.

"You may sleep," Loki said, noticing her tired state. "We won't be at the castle for a few hours."

"Are you sure?" She asked.

"Of course, I'm a bit tired myself. I had to wake up early if I wanted to come."

She smiled at him closed her eyes, the movement of the carriage slowly lulling her to sleep.

Loki watched as she fell asleep, smiling as she shifted in her seat. She looked so peaceful when she slept, and still looked just as beautiful.

Loki moved his hand over to her face and moved a strand of hair away from it. Suddenly the carriage hit a bump and Loki jumped. Luciana opened her eyes at this and looked at him confused for a moment.

"Just a bump in the road," He said quietly.

Luciana nodded and closed her eyes again, settling herself back into her slumber.

Loki watched her in silence as the carriage rolled through Asgard, and after a few moments of this, he closed his eyes and bent down, lightly kissing her cheek.

"I love you," He whispered, knowing full well she couldn't hear him.

There, he had said it to her, just like Frigga had asked him too. Of course, Frigga had meant tell her when she could actually hear and speak to him, but Loki couldn't bring himself to say it. He remembered the whole speech Frigga had given him the night before when he asked if he could go along to retrieve Luciana, and she had said to tell her how he truly felt, and quickly at that. But Loki couldn't bring himself to do it just yet, not knowing if his love for her was one-sided or not.

Loki couldn't understand why Frigga was so keen on him telling Luciana now. She had seemed almost nervous about it after the letter from Cyrus had arrived, stating that only Luciana was available to come. That letter had made Loki's heart soar, but it seemed to put Frigga on edge. He hadn't seen the letter himself, but Odin had said that only Luciana was coming and left it at that, leaving the other contents of the letter in the dark.

Loki couldn't say he wasn't curious to what else the letter had said, but it didn't matter much, he had exactly what he wanted, why spoil it?

Suddenly the carriage stopped and Loki was brought out of his thoughts. He opened his eyes and saw that the driver for the carriage had opened the door for Loki and was gesturing for him to step out with one arm, while the other held Luciana's trunk.

"We're here already?" Loki asked, confused.

"Yes, sir. You fell asleep halfway." The driver answered simply.

Loki looked down and found his head resting on Luciana's shoulder, and his arms snaked around her torso. He quickly released his hold on her and cleared his throat.

"Thank you, I'll be right out." He said and the driver nodded and walked off, but not before raising an eyebrow at Loki.

Loki couldn't believe he had fallen asleep, holding Luciana in his arms no less.

He sighed and shook Luciana's shoulder lightly.

"Hmm?" She asked tiredly, sitting up and looking at Loki.

"We're here," He said quietly, chuckling as she let out a small yawn.

Luciana nodded and hoisted herself off the seat and out the carriage.

Loki stayed in his seat for a moment, and Luciana turned around to look at him.

"Are you coming, Loki?" She asked.

"What? Oh, yes," Loki said.

Luciana smiled at him. "Good."

* * *

"I'm sure you'll love Lady Sif and the Warriors Three, but be warned they are a bit adventurous." Loki chuckled.

Luciana smiled and nodded as she held Loki's arm, the two walking into a sitting room.

"Friends," He said to Thor and four other people. "Allow me to introduce Luciana, daughter of Cyrus."

"Ah, Lady Luciana!" Thor exclaimed. "It is wonderful to see you again. These are our friends, Lady Sif, Fandral, Volstagg, and Hogun, also known as the Warriors Three."

Luciana looked at the four Asgardian warriors and smiled. "It's nice to meet you, Loki has told me quite a bit about you."

"And you as well," Lady Sif said, nodding to Luciana. "He tells us you are a sorceress."

Luciana sat down on a chair and nodded. "I am."

Luciana could tell these four were wary of her, because of her sorceress status. Because of their immense power, a magician, no matter what magical art they studied, were considered untrustworthy, always thought to be scheming against the royals. It was understandable why the four would be wary of her.

"Perhaps you could show us?" Sif asked.

Luciana was taken aback by this. Usually no one asked to see a magicians work unless they were an Asgardian official, and the magicians usually only performed magic in private, away from accusing eyes.

"Well," Luciana began hesitantly. "Alright."

She waved her hand and it produced a bright glow before fading away. Everyone except Luciana held their breath and waited to see what would happen.

"Nothing happened," Volstagg said, after a few uneventful moments had passed.

Suddenly bright, glowing people-like figures appeared around the room and everyone, minus Luciana, jumped. The figures floated around the room were looked at in awe as they drifted above the Asgardians heads.

"Brilliant..." Loki breathed, staring at figures. "What are they used for?"

"We use them to distract our opponents in battle," Luciana replied. "My father deems it a useful spell, though in these times it isn't used much."

She then waved her hand again, and the figures faded away into a glowing mist before completely vanishing.

"Have you ever used it?" Sif asked.

"A couple times when I encountered trolls or goblins, but other than that I haven't had much use for it." Luciana replied.

The four Asgardian warriors only remained silent, and Luciana felt awkward as she shifted in her seat. They obviously didn't trust her much, and she didn't like to stay where she wasn't entirely wanted.

"Um, if you all would excuse me," Luciana said standing up. "I think I'll be heading up to my chambers now. I'm quite tired from my trip."

* * *

After that night's dinner, Luciana sat in her bed and read the poetry book Loki had given her, for the fourth time.

It was a book she was quite fond of, and the fact that her good friend Loki gave it to her made it all the more special. He was so kind to her, she just couldn't see why Viveca was still upset about him. He was much more dignified than Ronan and Harcourt, yet Viveca had once stated she rather them than Loki.

Luciana was brought out of her thoughts by someone knocking on the door. She looked up from her book and at the door.

"Come in," She called.

The door opened and Loki stepped in, looking around the room before letting his eyes fall on her. He smiled as he walked towards the bed.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything," He said, gesturing to the book.

"Oh no," She said closing the book. "Just doing some reading"

"Ah," Loki nodded. "Would it be alright if I sit?" He asked, gesturing to the bed.

"Of course," She said nodding, and he sat down.

"I noticed you were uncomfortable when speaking with Sif and the others," He noted. "Are you alright?"

"Oh yes, I'm fine," She replied with a shrug. "I know what some Asgardians think of me, it's alright."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm used to it."

There was silence between the two for a moment.

"That enchantment you did today was amazing." Loki spoke up.

She smiled at him. "Thank you,"

"You know, we've discussed magic, but I've never actually seen you perform it until today." He said.

"You're quite right," She chuckled. "And I have never seen you perform magic at all, I think I would like to."

Loki chuckled at her and waved his hand, and a single white rose began to materialize in it.

"That's beautiful," She said, smiling at it.

Loki only took her hand and placed the rose in it, enclosing her fingers around the stem.

"Beautiful, yes," He said, smiling at her. "But nothing, no matter how fair or how lovely, will ever compare to your beauty."

Luciana felt the heat rise to her cheeks as she held the rose, and she smiled back at him.

"Thank you," She said.

"For the rose, or for the compliment?" He asked.

"For everything."

Loki smiled at her again, and nodded once.

"You're welcome."

* * *

**Horrible ending for a short chapter. Please forgive me...and review.**


	11. Chapter Eleven

**Okay so there's a bit of a time skip in this chapter. Not much though, only a week because I couldn't make up any really good Loki/Luciana moments except for one really good one coming up after this chapter and a couple others after.**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"This spell creates a ring of fire around you're foes, my mother often used it on my sister and I at times when we decided to run off."

Loki laughed at Luciana's statement as he looked at a spell book. After a week at the castle, she had gotten out the spell book she had packed for her trip, and was currently reading through it with him. He listened intently as she explained the various enchantments, telling him about their history and usage. Many of the spells Loki had already knew and perfected, but he only listened as she continued to speak, enthralled by the sound of her voice.

"This one, though I've never used it, is supposed to turn you into any element you desire, as long as you are in contact with said element," She explained, turning her head to look at her friend.

Loki nodded as he pulled her a bit closer towards him. He then put his hands on her waist and hoisted her onto his lap, resting his chin on her shoulder.

She blushed furiously at this and let out a breathless laugh as she glanced at Loki, who smirked.

"Just so I can see better," He said. "Please, continue."

"Okay," She said letting out another breathless laugh as she shook her head slightly, turning back to the book "In order to use this spell, you must be touching or pointing at an element such as fire or water. Then you can transform into this element and disguise or travel as it if you wish. It was created by the witch, Magdalena, who created when she..."

She explained the properties of the spell to Loki, who nodded as his chin rested on her shoulder, one arm wrapped around her torso and the other holding his glass of unfortunately strong wine, which he sipped every so often.

He had had it left over from that night's dinner, and for some alcohol induced reason, took it with him into the library. He probably wouldn't have had Luciana on his lap right now if he were more sober, but the slight intoxication and his usual longing for her mixed together and caused his desires to compel his actions. Though slightly flustered, Luciana didn't seem too fazed by the ordeal, dismissing it as the wine and nothing more, a statement half true.

"Though Magdalena created a useful spell," Luciana said. "It contributed to her death when she foolishly gave the spell to her sister, who used it to burn Magdalena out of jealousy and-"

"Luciana?" Loki cut her off, staring at his wine.

"Yes?"

"Do you...Do you believe in love at first sight?"

She was slightly taken aback by this question. She looked at him to see if he was fooling around with her, but his face remained solemn as he looked up at her expectantly.

"Depends..." She said slowly, thinking it over. "Why?"

Loki shrugged as his swished the wine around in his glass. "Just curious, I suppose."

"Well, to be honest with you I don't know if I believe in love at first sight or not. I mean, I suppose it's happened to many people, but I wonder if it really is love or not. Love at first sight means you feel love for someone the minute you meet them, but the problem with that is you don't really know them. And you could do all these things like get married and have children, only to find that you didn't fall in love with the person you thought you had."

"I suppose believing in love at first sight is like believing in true love; you'll never know until the end. If you really fall in love with someone at first sight, you'll feel the exact same way you did when you first met them, even when you're taking your last breath. And that's where true love ties in, if you still feel the same way about someone, after all that time, then it was meant to be."

Loki looked curiously at Luciana who smiled.

"Sorry," She apologized. "You were probably just looking for a yes or no."

"It's alright," He said, smiling. "I like hearing your opinions, you always have something interesting to say."

"Such a charmer," She playfully teased, smiling at him.

"I try," He chuckled, raising his wine glass to his lips.

"Better be careful drinking too much of that, Loki, you might get naughty." She joked.

"Would you like me to?" He asked raising an eyebrow at her suggestively, a mischievous smirk on his face.

"Loki!" She exclaimed, a blush rushing to her cheeks as she hit him in the stomach.

"Kidding, kidding," He laughed.

She smiled and leaned forward on the desk, taking her shoulder away from Loki. She smiled at him as she folded her hands under her chin. Loki smirked and pulled her back towards him, returning his chin to her shoulder, only to have her remove it again. She giggled as he playfully glared at her and downed the rest of his wine.

"Now look who's the naughty one," He said.

"I'm not naughty. I'm simply enjoying irritating a drunken man. Anyways, we shouldn't even be here."

"Why?" He asked curiously.

"It's not proper for a lady to be in a room alone with a drunken man."

"We aren't doing anything wrong."

"Really?" She asked, raising an eyebrow. "I'm sitting on your lap and you're trying to cuddle my shoulder. Not the most acceptable behaviour."

Loki chuckled. "I've probably had too much wine, sorry," He said as he put his wine glass on the table. "At least I'm not as drunk as Thor probably is; he's an oaf when intoxicated."

Luciana smiled at him as she got off his lap and placed herself back into the chair beside him, pushing a lock of hair away from her face.

Loki watched her and took in a breath. "Luciana, I have something I think I should tell you."

She looked at him curiously. "Yes, Loki?"

"I, uh," He began to say, and he watched her as she looked at him expectantly.

He ran his tongue over his teeth before sighing and letting out a breathless laugh. Now wasn't the time to tell her, not when he was half sober.

"Never mind," He said, shaking his head. "I'll tell you when I'm a bit more...stable."

She nodded at him and looked at the door. "I should probably get to bed."

He nodded. "Alright, sleep well."

He leaned over and kissed her cheek lightly before pulling away and looking into her eyes. She smiled at him as a blush formed onto her cheeks, and her eyes avoided his as she turned her head away from him. Loki put his hand under her chin and moved her head to look at him. He stared into her eyes for what seemed like hours before he leaned in and gently placed his lips on hers.

She jumped at the feeling of Loki's cold lips on hers, thoroughly shocked by the gesture. Luciana could smell the wine on his breath, and it took a few moments before she was able to return the kiss. She rested her hands on Loki's chest as he deepened the kiss, moving his hand from her chin and cupping her face. His thumb rubbed her cheek as their hearts pounded, but the two didn't break away from their passionate embrace.

For a long while they stayed that way, both too shocked and content to move. But they had to come for air, and Luciana pulled back panting, staring into Loki's eyes.

Luciana shook her head slightly, trying to break herself out of her daze. She stood up from her chair and looked at Loki, who seemed just as shocked as her.

"Goodnight, Loki," She said nodding at him nervously before walking briskly out of the library, her fingers touching her lips.

* * *

Luciana quickly shut the doors to her chambers and leaned on them, her heart hammering in her chest.

She and Loki had kissed, without warning they had just kissed, and she had no idea what to make of it. It was the strangest thing that had ever happened to her, and it startled her greatly, but she'd be lying if she said she didn't enjoy it. The truth of the matter was, she _loved_ it. She loved the feeling of his lips on hers, the coolness of his breath, the thrill and excitement of her first kiss, she loved every second of it.

It was so wrong, what they did. They weren't married, they weren't in a courtship, and they hadn't known each other _that _long. But despite all of that, it felt so right. It felt so right to have Loki there with her, it felt so right to kiss him, everything about it felt right.

She brought her hands up to her forehead and sighed in distress and happiness, terribly confused.

Things between her and Loki were going to change now. Whether for the good or the bad, she didn't know.

She brought her fingers to her lips and smiled.

She hoped for the good.

* * *

**Boom! Loki loves Luciana, Luciana's falling for Loki, what could go wrong?**

**Many things, my loyal readers. Many, many things...Muwahahaha.**


	12. Chapter Twelve

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story**

* * *

The next morning Luciana walked towards the dining room for breakfast, still heavily dazed by what had occurred the night before with Loki.

She hadn't slept that night; her mind was too muddled to allow sleep's entrance. She kept replaying her kiss with Loki over and over in her mind, and she swore that she could still feel his lips pressed against hers. Her emotions had taken quite a toll because of this. All at once, she found herself feeling confused but happy, frightened but excited, guilty yet shameless.

As she walked towards the doors to the dining room, she felt a hand go over her mouth and another grab her waist. Startled, she began to scream and struggle as she was dragged into an empty corridor and into a darkened room.

"Relax!" A male voice whispered as her screams were muffled by their hand. "It's me, Loki!"

Luciana stopped screaming and sighed in relief as Loki let go of her. She turned around to look at him, but could only see the outline of his figure in the darkness. "Why in the Nine Realms would you do that?" She exclaimed, and Loki shushed her.

"Lower your voice," He whispered. "I don't want anyone to hear."

"Loki, what's this about?" She whispered, her eyes trying to adjust to the darkness.

He sighed and conjured up a small ball of light that floated up above their heads, allowing Luciana to see him better. "This is about last night," He said quietly.

"Oh..." She began, her heart fluttering. "The kiss."

"Yes, the kiss. Luciana, I honestly never meant to do that, and I never wanted to make you feel uncomfortable. I just...I wasn't myself, I wasn't thinking straight, and I'm sorry I put you in such an awkward position. Could we just forget that ever happened?"

Luciana's heart sunk. "Oh...Okay, yes of course."

"Great," Loki said, sounding relieved. "So everything is alright between us?"

"What? Oh! Yes, of course. I completely understand why it happened, it's perfectly fine."

"Perfect, thank you so much."

He made the ball of light disappear and walked out of the room, leaving Luciana alone.

She looked down at the floor and sighed sadly.

"Perfect..."

* * *

Luciana was oddly quiet at breakfast, only chewing her food in silence as she kept her eyes on her plate.

Loki tried to bring her into the conversation, asking her how her breakfast was or what she thought of a certain topic, but he'd only receive a minimum amount of words or she'd pretend she didn't hear him. He wondered if she still felt uncomfortable about the kiss, but he didn't dare bring it up in front of his family. Instead, he tried to catch her gaze and hopefully get her to speak to him, to no avail.

"Brother, Luciana," Thor exclaimed, breaking Loki out of an attempt for Luciana's attention.

"Yes, Thor?" Loki asked, somewhat irritated.

"We are all going to meet Lady Sif and the Warriors Three at the stables for riding! Come now, it will be good fun!"

Thor didn't wait for an answer as he stood up and pulled Loki out of his chair, dragging him along as he walked over to Luciana and did the same to her.

As Thor dragged the two out of the dining room, Loki caught the gaze of Luciana. "_We need to talk,_" He mouthed, making sure that his elder brother could not see.

She only ignored him as she looked at the floor, wanting to look at anything else.

* * *

"Ah, there you are! We've been waiting for you!" Fandral exclaimed as Thor came to the stables, still dragging his brother and Luciana.

"Yes, we're all very eager to see this dragon you've spoken of Thor." Sif said, picking up a double-edged spear.

Luciana froze in her tracks and took her arm away from Thor. "Dragon? Surely you don't mean Lothar?"

"Yes, Lothar was its name. Sounds like a brutish beast if you ask me, but I'm sure we'll be able to handle him and his armies of lizard-men." Fandral said chuckling.

"Don't forget dragons!" Volstagg added, raising a finger.

"Thor, I-I told you how dangerous this dragon was! Did you know anything about this?" Luciana asked Loki, who sighed.

"I knew Thor was going to go after the dragon. I just didn't think it'd be today, or that he'd bring _you_ into it." He replied through gritted teeth as he looked at Thor.

"Oh, relax, brother," Thor said, putting a hand on Loki's shoulder. "No harm will come to her. All she has to do is lead us to the beast and fight off his armies with us; surely she is powerful enough to do that!"

"Um, I'm sorry," Luciana said, raising her hand. "But who said I would be taking you to the dragon?"

"Well, you will won't you?" Thor asked.

"No!" Luciana exclaimed, shocked. "No, I wouldn't be taking you to Lothar! Did you not hear me telling you how _dangerous_ he is? And his armies are just as lethal! Why on Asgard would you after him, when I specifically told you you'll die trying."

Thor laughed. "No beast is a match for the son of Odin! Sif and the Warriors Three are the finest warriors in all of Asgard, and they aren't going to let me and my brother and I face this beast alone!"

"You're going?" Luciana asked, whipping around to look at Loki.

"No! Well, actually yes." He admitted.

"Well you're mad," She declared, turning around to everyone else. "You all are! And if you think I'm going to take you to Lothar's keep you are mistaken."

She turned around to walk away but was stopped by two strong hands grabbing her waist and hoisting her onto someone's shoulder. She let out a yelp of surprise and began to struggle, banging on her captors back with her fists.

"Sif," Thor's voice said, revealing him as the captor. "Could you get Lady Luciana some armour for our journey? She won't be able to fight properly in a dress."

"Of course, follow me." Sif said and walked towards the castle. Thor followed after her, unfazed as Luciana pounded on his back and chuckling as she let out cries of frustration.

Only one word entered her mind as she struggled in Thor's grip.

_Damn._

* * *

**Please review! **

**And sorry its short, I want to extend the story's length so I can just be finishing it up by the time Thor 2 comes out and I have the chance to see it.**


	13. Chapter Thirteen

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

How Sif and the castle maids were able to get Luciana in armour, she didn't know. All she knew was, at the moment, she was sitting behind Loki on his horse and they were all on their way to the forest which held Lothar's keep.

"I can't believe you're letting your brother do this," She harshly whispered to Loki. "This is possibly the most careless, idiotic, and most dangerous thing I have ever seen someone do!"

"Thor won't listen to me," Loki defended, his voice a whisper. "I tried to talk him out of it, but obviously it didn't work."

"Well, did someone at least tell a guard or something where we were going?"

"Uh...No."

"What?" Luciana nearly shouted. "No one knows where we're going? That means no one can stop us!"

"That was Thor's plan."

"Yes, but that's not _your _plan. You should have told someone!"

"Well I didn't!" Loki hissed, his patience running thin. "Look, I'm sorry. But it's not fair for you to ignore me, and then when you do decide to acknowledge my existence, only snap at me."

Luciana scowled at the back of his head and huffed in annoyance.

"Now would probably be a good time for us to talk." Loki whispered after a moment of silence.

Luciana didn't respond and Loki let out an exasperated sigh.

"You're so stubborn!" He irritably whispered. "You know what? Fine, don't speak to me, but I've done nothing wrong. I've explained, and apologized, for my behaviour last night, I don't see why you can't just let it go!"

"It's not that!" She said.

"Then what is it?"

"Its-"

"Ah, we're here!" Thor exclaimed, cutting her off. Sure enough, the seven were standing at the edge of the forest, and they only had to go deeper to reach Lothar's keep. "Now, which way?" He asked, turning to Luciana.

"I'm not telling you, Thor," She said. "You might have been able to get me here, but you forgot that I still have my own will!"

"Oh come now, Luciana!" Thor urged. "We won't be leaving this spot until you tell us; we'll stay here for an eternity if we have to!"

"Or we can all just walk into the forest and find it ourselves; we don't need to bring her." Loki said, obviously annoyed with her.

Luciana scowled at him and looked at Thor. "You just go straight, and you keep going straight until you find it. From what my father has told me, Lothar wasn't good with directions and preferred to be told that everything was straight ahead, so that's how he placed his castle. This wasn't exactly smart, since some ogres were able to get there frequently, but he was a stubborn man."

"Like some," Loki muttered as the horses started down into the forest.

Luciana scowled and roughly kicked his leg with her foot.

"Ow!" He exclaimed, and he looked over his shoulder to glare at her.

"Sorry," She said in mock innocence, glaring back at him.

Loki turned away from her and muttered under his breath about her childishness, to which she scowled.

How could one kiss change so much?

* * *

"How much farther to this castle?" Volstagg asked, looking around the woods.

The morning Asgardian sun was no longer seen through the thick trees that loomed over them. The forest was in utter darkness, with the exception of the small orbs of light hovering above them that Loki and Luciana had conjured up to guide them. The sun's absence had also brought down the summer temperature to the point where they could just barely see their breath, and the chill and the darkness together created an eerie environment for the seven.

"A bit further, I think." Luciana replied.

"Does your family live in a forest like this one?" Fandral asked, watching a raven that sat on a tree.

"No," She shook her head. "Ours gets more sunlight than this, and it isn't as silent."

Silence. That's what they heard after her statement, pure bone-chilling silence. The caw of a raven and the rustle of trees a bushes sometimes occurred, and occasionally the flapping of wings or a distant howl was heard. Other than that, the forest was the silent dwelling of solitude. Cold, dark, solitude.

"I think I see it," Sif said, squinting as she looked further into the darkness. "Yes, I see it! The outline of a castle."

The seven continued to ride forward and soon the small lights illuminated the stone castle wall. The castle most certainly wasn't as grand as the royal palace of Asgard, and it was nowhere near as large. But it had the structure of a castle, one that had been abandoned for what looked like hundreds of years.

"We shouldn't be here, we really shouldn't!" Luciana said as everyone dismounted their horses.

They ignored her statement as they walked towards the castle, and Luciana huffed. She felt someone grab her hand and she jumped and gasped as she looked down. Loki was standing there offering to help her of his horse, and she let out a small sigh of relief as she climbed off the steed.

"Thank you," She said quietly, nodding once at Loki before walking after the others.

Loki sighed and patted his horse once before walking after her.

* * *

Thor pushed open the heavy wooden doors to the castle, and peered into the darkened room.

The inside of the castle was much, much larger than it was on the outside. The ceilings were as high as the eye could see, with spiral staircases going up from a platform on each side allowing entrance to the other parts of the castle. Red, tattered draperies and banners hung down from the walls, and crumbling stone, shattered glass, and broken light fixtures added to the scene of ruin.

There was a large, dark, and seemingly endless abyss separating the group from the large stone platform on the other side of the room, and the only way to get to it was to cross the crumbling, stone bridge in the middle of the abyss.

"Is it stable?" Fandral asked as Thor walked towards it.

Luciana walked over to the bridge and stepped on it, tapping it with her foot and waiting for it collapse under her weight. "I think so," She responded, putting both feet onto the bridge, relieved when it remained in place.

The group walked over the bridge slowly and silently, keeping their eyes open for any movement.

"Where is this dragon?" Volstagg asked, looking around as they reached the platform.

"I don't know," Luciana said. "He should be-"

Suddenly a loud roar came from above and its source smashed through the ceiling in an avalanche of stone and dust. The group covered their heads as stone fell down around them, the loud crashing echoing around the room. As the chaos ceased, they all looked up and came face to face with a large, red dragon with coal black talons and bright yellow eyes. It was Lothar.

He caught sight of the group and stared at them before growling and letting out a huge roar that made the castle shake, causing stones to fall to the ground. Distant roars and screeches were soon heard, and they drew closer and closer to them. With loud roars, crashes, and shouts, fleets of lizard-men ambushed the room, quickly making their way towards the group.

"Prepare yourselves!" Thor shouted, taking out a lizard-man easily with his hammer.

Sif and the Warriors Three pulled out there weapons and began to attack the violent beasts that came towards them. Luciana prepared herself to shoot one down with her magic, but Loki grabbed her arm.

"Listen," He yelled over the screeching lizards. "Get out of here as fast as you can! Make it back to the castle and tell my father to bring help!"

"What? I'm not leaving you all here!" She yelled back.

"Just do it!" And with that he pulled out a dagger and threw it at the incoming reptiles.

Luciana ignored Loki and shot powerful beams of light at the creatures, knocking them down and depriving them of life. The group fought aggressively, taking down reptile after reptile. Thor knocking them down with his hammer and striking them with lightning; Hogan attacking them with his mace; and Loki sending daggers towards them. They all fought to the best of their abilities, but other lizards took the place of the fallen. Each time one was killed another would take its place, getting bigger and more equipped with the deadliest of weapons.

"Move!" Luciana heard Loki shout, and out of the blue the man had knocked her down onto the bridge as a spear flew through the air. He covered her body with his own as spears, arrows, and rocks were thrown about, threatening to harm the group as they sailed through the air and towards the Asgardians heads.

Lothar let out another thunderous roar and whipped his tail over to the bridge as lizard-men continued to run towards the three. He let his tail strike the bridge and within a second, the structure began to collapse and the two screamed as they fell into the abyss, plunging down into the darkness.

* * *

**Short with a cliffhanger, my specialty. **

**I warmly welcome your reviews!**


	14. Chapter Fourteen

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

The rest of the group watched in horror as Loki and Luciana fell into the abyss, bringing the rest of the bridge with them.

"We have to find them!" Volstagg shouted, striking a lizard-man with his axe. "There's a chance they could still be alive!"

"Over there!" Fandral cried out, and he pointed over to a door where, fortunately, no lizard men came out of.

The five ran over to the door, fighting off the lizards as they went. They opened the door and slammed it shut behind them before the reptilians could enter. They leaned on the door as the lizard-men pounded on it, trying to catch their breath as they held the door shut.

"Alright, now that that's settled. How are we going to find Loki and Luciana?" Fandral asked.

"There," Hogun said pointing to a staircase going down. "They fell into the abyss, if we are going to have any hope of finding them we'll have to start there."

The door began to rattle harder as the lizard-men pounded on it.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go find the others." Thor said, and he led the Sif and Warriors Three down the dark staircase.

* * *

Screaming and the thunderous crashing of the bridge was all that could be heard in the abyss. As the stone tumbled down, and the darkness went on for what seemed like forever, Loki thought for sure that this would be their final moments.

Abruptly, everything went silent and they landed on a surprisingly softly on a surface that literally felt like air, and Loki's eyebrows furrowed in confusion as his eyes were clamped shut.

Loki carefully opened one eyed and looked down at Luciana, who was still being shielded by his body. She produced a yellow glow from her hands that made a floating, circular platform under them and he realized that she had used her magic to create a barrier that would stop them from falling, and allow them to land safely, though he doubt they were anywhere close to the ground.

He pushed himself off her and began to stand.

"Don't stand up!" Luciana cried, her eyes shut and her body shaking. "It'll make it move."

Loki laid back down and settled himself beside her. "Are you alright?"

"No, no I-I'm not," She said, her voice shaking horribly.

Loki sighed and looked at the platform. "How far are we from the ground?"

"Oh, I don't know," She said, sounding terribly distressed. "There might not even be a ground."

"It's okay, we're fine, we're okay, everything's fine."

"Fine? Fine? How is this 'fine'? This is nowhere near 'fine'!" Panic started to flood her voice, and he could see tears brimming in her eyes.

"Relax," He said, trying to soothe her. "Relax, just relax."

"Relax?" Luciana exclaimed, and the glow in her hands disappeared, making the platform evaporate from under them. They fell for a terrifying moment before Luciana was able to regain her concentration and conjure the platform again, nearly sobbing as she looked at her hands. "How can I relax? Look where we are!" She cried.

He sighed and looked around the dark abyss, conjuring an orb of light in his hand to illuminate the area. He threw it over the edge of the platform and watched as it fell deeper into the abyss.

"What are you doing?" She asked.

"Just wait."

The orb surprisingly didn't fall that far before landing on the stone floor below. Loki guessed that if they fell they would survive, but they would have the air painfully knocked out of them

"It's not that far down," He said, wrapping his arms around her. "Let go of the platform."

"What? Are you mad?"

"Just trust me."

Luciana let out a small cry of distress before reluctantly removing her magic. The platform evaporated and she let out a scream as she slammed her eyes shut. Loki held her tightly as they fell for what he knew wouldn't be long. Just before they hit the ground, Loki moved Luciana onto his stomach and allowed his back to take the blow. The wind was violently knocked out of him and he groaned as he came into contact with the stone.

"Oh thank Valhalla," Luciana said relieved, resting her head on Loki's chest. "Are you alright?"

"I'll have to get back to you on that," He wheezed as he sat up. "What about you?"

"I-I'm calming down," She said, taking herself off Loki.

"I take it you aren't good with heights?"

"Not at all."

He looked at her for a moment before putting a hand on her cheek, letting his thumb stroke her skin. "You have a cut here," He said, inspecting the blood on his fingers.

She looked at his fingers and grimaced at the sight of the red liquid. She averted her eyes away from the blood and looked around the dark area."What do we do now?" She asked.

Loki sighed and laid back down, conjuring more orbs of light to hover above them.

What did they do now? Were they stuck here, condemned to live out the rest of their days in darkness? He doubted that Thor and the rest of the group would be able to find them down here; they might not even survive to rescue themselves. He supposed that he and Luciana could wait there for longer and see if the rest of the group would actually be able to find them, but the chances of that were slim.

"We wait," He said, closing his eyes. "We might as well anyway, if we stay here at least we won't get lost."

Luciana looked at him uncertainly before sighing and sitting on a piece of rubble.

This was going to take awhile.

* * *

For hours the two sat in silence, occasionally letting out a sigh or a cough as they waited.

"How much longer should we wait?" Luciana asked, her head in her hands as she rested her elbows on her knees.

"A bit longer," Loki responded, pushing himself off the ground and moving over to sit next to her. "I think now would be a good time to talk."

Luciana sighed. "We already talked on the way here."

"No, we fought on the way here. We never accomplished any talking."

Luciana sighed and absent-mindedly played with her ponytail.

"Listen," Loki continued. "I'm sorry about the kiss, I honestly am. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable or mad, and I'm sorry that I did."

"It's not that..." She trailed off, looking at her hands.

"What is it, then?" He asked, sounding desperate as he took her hands into his. "If I've done something else wrong then I'd like to mend it."

"It's just that I..." She began uncertainly. "It's nothing." She shook her head.

The aura around them changed dramatically, and tensions seemed to rise within a second.

Loki scowled and let go of her hands. "I don't see why you can't just tell me, I'm only trying to make things right between us."

"Well, I don't see why you can't just accept the fact that I don't feel like telling you!" She said bitterly, standing up.

"The only reason I keep asking is because it's caused you to be upset with me and I have no idea as to why!" He exclaimed standing up.

"But you should respect the fact that I don't wish to tell you and leave it at that!"

"I'm not going to just 'leave it at that' because I want to know why you're behaving so rudely to me!"

"That's none of your concern!"

"I only want things to go back to the way they were!" He yelled.

"Why?" She yelled back.

"Because I love you!" He shouted, practically seething with rage.

Luciana became flabbergasted, and her jaw dropped as all the anger fled from her body.

"What?"

* * *

**Cliffhanger!**

**Reviews, reviews are good, reviews are essential! **


	15. Chapter Fifteen

**I changed the cover image! Like it? Good. Now, carry on with your usual reading routine.**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

Silence followed; a tense, unbearable silence.

Both were too stunned to speak as they stared at one another. Loki hadn't meant for that to come out, and Luciana certainly wasn't expecting it to. But it had, and they had nowhere to run, nowhere to hide, they had to face it, here and now.

"I-" Loki began to say, but was cut off by loud clapping.

The two whipped their heads to look at the source of the sound, and nearly gasped at what they saw. Walking towards them was an old, hag-like woman. She had long greying hair and sickly pale skin, and she had deep circles under her eyes. She wore all black from head to toe, and her long, sharp, black nails matched.

She chuckled darkly as she walked towards the pair. "Well, well, well," She said in a gravelly voice. "I always did love drama, especially between lovers."

"Who are you?" Luciana asked, eying the woman up and down as she came face to face with her.

"Oh child," The woman chuckled, taking the young woman's chin in her bony hands. "Your father must have told you _something_ about this history of this castle. Then again, Cyrus was always a vague man, I should know. After all, we had the same master."

It finally clicked in her mind who that woman was. "You," Luciana began. "You're Deitra!"

She smiled wickedly and dug her long nails into Luciana's flesh. "The one and only."

"We were just leaving," Loki said, taking Luciana's wrist in an attempt to pull her away from the woman.

"It didn't look like that to me," Deitra replied, removing her hand from Luciana's chin. "And who is this young man who has found himself so helplessly trapped with the daughter of Cyrus, hmm?"

"That's none of your concern," Loki said, watching the woman as she walked around him.

"Very well, then," She said, turning back to Luciana. "You're a very lucky girl, daughter of Cyrus, for being able to catch the heart of this handsome boy. I'd be envious of you, that is, if you weren't going to die."

"What?" Luciana asked, her eyebrows furrowing.

Deitra smirked and snapped her fingers, red sparks appearing as she did. A whispering noise began to occur around them and it grew louder and louder by the second. Luciana and Loki looked around frantically, trying to pin the source of the whispers, but they couldn't find it as it grew louder and louder to the point where it was practically screeching in their ears. The whispers abruptly stopped and an eerie silence took their place. Suddenly fleets of spiders crawled out of the cracks in the stone and from behind the rubble, all quickly making their way to Luciana and Loki, who stepped back as the insects began to surround them.

"Dinner is ready, my dears," Deitra said, smiling wickedly at the two. "Eat it up."

The spiders let out a loud screeching sound and launched themselves towards the two, their red eyes burning.

"Run!" Loki cried before dashing away from the spiders, Luciana not far behind.

They could hear Deitra's wicked laugh as they ran from her army of insects, Loki's orbs of light guiding their way through a long, dark tunnel. The spiders continued to race after them, more appearing from cracks in the stone as they went by. The foul insects continued to spawn and chase after them, the air filling with the sounds of screeches and whispers.

Loki and Luciana stopped at a crossroad in the tunnel and looked left and right, the spiders still raging behind them.

"Okay, you go left, I go right! If we split up maybe we can lose them!" Luciana told him, quickly looking over her shoulder at the approaching spiders.

"What? I'm not letting you go alone!" Loki exclaimed, looking over his shoulder.

"I'll be fine! Just-Just do it!" She exclaimed before speeding off down the right-hand side tunnel.

"Luciana? Luciana, are you mad?" He yelled after her, watching as half his light orbs sped after her.

He nearly ran after her when the spiders came closer, their screeches and whispers growing louder. He looked frantically at the right-hand side tunnel, where Luciana's figure was nowhere to be seen in the darkness. As the spiders drew nearer, Loki knew he had a decision to make. He could either do what Luciana said and go left, or he could go after her and make sure no harm came to her.

The deadly spiders were nearly at his feet when Loki chose the latter, and sped after Luciana.

* * *

"For Valhalla's sake," Fandral said, his feet tired from walking down the many steps. "How much farther do these stairs have to go, we've been walking for hours."

"Yes, it's a good thing we found that flint and torch, or else we'd be walking in darkness." Volstagg said, gesturing to the torch Thor held.

"You'd think the lizard-men would have found some way through the door to get to us by now." Sif observed, looking over her shoulder and back up the stairs.

"They don't come because they're cowards," Thor said. "They knew they never stood a chance against us. Once we have Loki and Luciana those beasts will meet their end, along with that dragon."

"We should leave," Hogun said solemnly, and the others turned to look at him.

"What?" Thor asked, seeming amused.

"After we find Luciana and Loki, we should return to the palace. Luciana is correct; this dragon is much too powerful for us. We shouldn't have come." Hogun replied.

Thor laughed. "Oh Hogun, my dear friend, you forget that no beast is a match for the mighty Thor!"

"Perhaps Hogun is right, Thor," Sif said. "We don't know the state Loki and Luciana will be in when we find them. Those lizards will surely make it hard for us to escape if we try to attack them. We should just find them and go back."

"Sif is right, we should." Volstagg agreed.

"My friends, you are the fiercest warriors of Asgard. Why do you wish to flee? When we slay these beasts we will rid Asgard of them forever, they shall never walk this realm again." Thor said.

"Well, look what we have here," Fandral said, stepping of the staircase and standing in front of two tunnels. "Looks like we've made it to the bottom."

"Which way do we go, then?" Volstagg asked.

"We'll split up," Thor said. "Sif, you and I go down the left path; Hogun, Fandral, you and Volstagg go down the right one. If we don't find anything within an hour we return to this spot."

"But how are to do that with only one torch?" Volstagg asked.

"The torch isn't our greatest problem," Hogun said grimly. "Listen."

There was silence for a moment before they heard it. Distant screeches and whispers that were drawing closer to the five. Coming down the right tunnel, they saw thousands of beady red eyes coming towards them, and as they came closer they owners of the eyes were revealed to be spiders. The spiders seemed to glare at the group hungrily and they sped up as more of them spawned from cracks in the stone.

"Run!" Fandral exclaimed, starting down the left tunnel at top speed, the other four soon following as a swarm of spiders ran after them.

* * *

Loki finally spotted Luciana's running figure and the light orbs as he ran further down the tunnel. He picked up his pace and caught up to the woman, who looked at him in shock as she continued to run from the army of loud, hungry insects.

"What are you doing? You were supposed to go down the other tunnel!" She yelled.

"I wasn't going to let you go alone!" He shouted back.

She didn't respond as she continued to run, her heart pounding and her breath in pants.

A loud high-pitched screech was heard and Luciana and Loki cringed and covered their ears at the volume. But the spiders acted differently. They suddenly stopped in their tracked and turned around, quickly scampering away towards the source of the screech. Loki and Luciana stopped in their tracks as well and watched in confusion as the spiders crawled away, their whispers and screeches slowly fading away. They both looked at each other for a moment before letting out breathless laughs of relief.

"I can't believe that actually just happened," She said, trying to catch her breath.

He nodded as he bent over and rested his hands on his knees, trying to regain his breath as well.

"What do we do now?" She asked, looking around the tunnel.

"I guess we keep going straight," He said standing up. "No sense in going after the spiders, now is there?"

She nodded and they began to walk down the tunnel wordlessly, keeping alert in case of the spiders return. The two walked for what seemed like hours in complete silence, only watching the small orbs of light that floated above their heads as they walked. Finally they came to a large clearing that seemed unfortunately very familiar to them.

"Unbelievable," Luciana said, gesturing to some rubble. "This is where we started! We've gone in a complete circle!"

"I would appear that way, wouldn't it?" They heard a woman's voice say, and they frowned at each other as they recognized the source.

"Deitra, get us out of here now!" Loki demanded, walking closer to the woman who appeared from behind rubble.

"And why would I do that? I get lonely here, with only my spiders for company. And what's worse is that I'm trapped in Lothar's labyrinth dungeon, I would absolutely _love_ your company." She said innocently.

"Don't play games!" He nearly shouted. "Tell us where the exit is!"

She frowned and pointed behind her to a door cleverly hidden by some rubble. "It's that way, but I doubt you will-"

She stopped herself as Thor, Sif, and the Warriors Three burst through the door, the swarm of spiders behind them.

"Thor!" Loki cried. "That door is the exit; we have to get to it!"

"Never!" Deitra yelled.

Luciana shot a beam of light at the woman, who flew back and into a wall. She then turned and shot a large light at the spiders, throwing them violently towards Deitra. She began to scream as the spiders crawled on her, biting her flesh and pulling at her skin. They were eating her alive.

"Come on!" Luciana cried, running towards the door, the rest of the group running after her.

They didn't stop running for hours, staying completely silent and alert as they ran down the dark tunnel. They clambered up the stairs as fast as they could, ignoring cries of pain when someone stepped on someone else's foot or nudged them with their elbow, they were too desperate for escape. The group finally made it to the room where Thor, Sif, and the Warriors Three had started, and they all stopped to catch their breath.

"Well that's great; we only have one more problem." Luciana said.

"Which is?" Fandral asked.

"The dragon."

* * *

**Yeah, I suck at action/adventure scenes. Hey, I'm a drama writer, what do you expect?  
**

**Anyways, review please and thank you!**


	16. Chapter Sixteen

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story**

* * *

"Well what are we waiting for?" Thor asked raising his hammer. "Let us slay the beast!"

"Thor, no!" Luciana protested. "We have to leave!"

Thor ignored her as he opened the door and marched towards Lothar, who growled. The dragon roared loudly, and called for his lizard-men. The reptiles came obediently and rushed towards the group, screeching and flailing weapons about, all ready to kill. And the battle began; the group of Asgardians fighting off the army of the deadly reptiles. Weapons were thrown about among the reptilian screeches, and powerful blasts of Luciana's magic erupted around them. Needless to say, it was chaos; pure, violent chaos.

Luciana quickly made her way to where the bridge once stood. She got onto her hands and knees and peered into the dark abyss, her heart pounding as the depth made her dizzy. She jumped as hand landed on her shoulder, and she looked back at whoever it was. Loki was there kneeling beside her, ducking his head as an arrow flew by.

"What the hell are you doing?" He shouted over the turmoil.

"I'm going to try and reconstruct the bridge!" She yelled, making a glow come from her hands. "We need to get out of here!"

"Do you know how dangerous doing something like that is?"

"Yes! Now, cover me!"

She turned back to the abyss and raised her hand above it, waiting for her enchantment to take place. Loki watched her do this for a moment before sending daggers at reptiles that ran towards them. Luciana concentrated hard despite what transpired around her. All she had to do was summon the rubble of the fallen bridge back to the top of the abyss and place it back together. They had to leave this castle as quick as they possibly could, whether Thor wanted to or not. They wouldn't survive Lothar no matter how hard they tried.

"Come on," She whispered, desperately hoping to see the rubble rise.

Luckily, she was soon able to see the outline of the debris rising from the darkness, and she smiled. With a sweep of her arm, the debris placed itself together with loud bangs. Like puzzle pieces, the rising stones fit together perfectly and formed the bridge for the group to cross.

"We have to go!" Loki yelled to the others, helping Luciana stand up.

"Not yet!" Thor yelled, sending his hammer through some lizard-men.

"Thor, we must!" Sif yelled as she ran with the Warriors Three to the bridge.

Thor looked at them before looking at Lothar and glaring. "Not until I slay this beast!"

"Thor-" Loki began to protest, but was cut off by the castle doors bursting open.

The group turned around and were stunned at the sight of Asgardian guards running over the bridge and towards the lizard-men, their weapons drawn. They were even more shocked by the sight of Odin on his eight-legged horse.

The guards fought the lizard-men viciously, screeches and battle cries filling the room. But the group were not focused on that, they instead watched as Odin raised his staff towards the enraged dragon, who growled loudly at the Allfather. A large powerful blast of magic shot out Odin's staff and flew towards Lothar with terrifying speed, before hitting the beast in the head. The room shook at the impact and with a dramatic roar; the mighty beast began to stumble, before collapsing onto the ground.

They all watched as the dragon transformed into an old man in a tattered robe, who coughed and wheezed as he laid on the ground. The lizard-men around them suddenly turned into ash, and disappeared from sight, their weapons dropping to the ground with loud clangs.

"Lothar..." Luciana breathed, staring at the man as the room quieted.

She walked quickly over to the man and knelt over him, holding his head in her hands.

"Sir?" She asked quietly.

Lothar opened his eyes and breathed in painfully before looking up at her. "Cyrus, is that you?"

She shook her head as she stared at him, wonder and concern in her eyes.

"Oh, then who are you?" He asked, his breathing becoming laboured.

"I'm Cyrus' daughter, Luciana."

"Ah, I see. You have his eyes, you see. You have those same stormy, grey eyes that I once said belonged to great power..." He trailed off in his memories and took a deep shaky breath. "Wish your father well, my dear."

"I will," She nodded, smiling slightly.

Lothar smiled back before letting out one last breath, and she watched as his eyes rolled to the back of his head. She swallowed as she took her fingers to his eyes and slid down his eyelids, her face solemn as she gently removed her hands from his head.

"Luciana?" Loki asked, and she turned to face him. "Are you alright?"

She nodded and stood up from the body of Lothar, taking once last look at him before walking over to Loki.

"Heimdall told me of your whereabouts," Odin said to the group. "I've come take you back to the palace," He was livid as he stared at them. "Come."

* * *

Luciana hadn't seen Loki since they returned to the castle, when Odin had ordered him and Thor to go to the throne room.

Now, she was quietly making her way through the corridors of the palace to make it to Loki's room. She paused every so often if she heard footsteps or voices, but as soon as they ceased she continued to make her way to the prince's room. As she walked, she pulled her silk robe tighter around her nightgown, and she listened to her own breathing, since there was nothing else.

She stopped at gold set of double doors and knocked lightly on them, biting her lip as she waiting for it to be answered.

They opened slightly and Loki, clad in his black nightwear, stuck his head out to look at his late night caller. His eyes widened slightly once he caught sight of her, but he smiled. "Luciana, what are you doing here?" He asked, his voice at a whisper.

"I wanted to speak to you," She whispered back. "But the Allfather ordered you away so fast I hadn't had the chance."

He nodded, urging her to continue.

"In the dungeon, before Deitra showed up, you said that...that you...that you loved me," She told him awkwardly, looking at her hands. "And I just wanted to know if...if you meant it."

Loki swallowed as he looked at her, unsure on how to respond.

She took notice of his silence. "Well?" She softly urged, unable to take the anticipation.

Without warning, he grabbed her hands and pulled her into his room, closing the doors behind her.

"Wha-" A startled Luciana began to say, but was silenced by his lips crashing onto hers as she was pushed against the door.

She let out a muffled squeal of surprise, and her heart began to pound. She felt Loki's hands move to her waist and pull her closer to him as he passionately kissed her. It took her a moment to relax before letting her eyes flutter closed. She rested one arm on his as she allowed him to continue his kisses, her other arm slung over his shoulder. It was only when she found herself returning the kisses she pulled away, as if snapped back into reality.

"Loki, I'm not going to let someone kiss me if I don't know their true feelings," She said, shaking her head and taking his arms off her waist. "I want you to answer my question: Did you mean it when you said you loved me?"

He took her face in his hands and stared into her eyes, resting his forehead on hers.

"Loki, answer me," She said, allowing her nose to touch his. "Are you in love with me?"

He pecked her lips lightly before sighing. "Desperately."

Luciana's heart fluttered at that one word, and she swallowed as she stared into his eyes. She hadn't had the slightest idea on how to respond, and she bit her lip as silence ascended upon them.

"I don't...I don't know what to say." She told him truthfully, closing her eyes as his thumb caressed her cheek.

There was silence as they stood there, too comfortable yet terrified to move.

"I have to ask...Are my affections returned?" He broke the silence, his eyes staring into hers as they begged for an answer.

"I-I don't know..." She said, turning her gaze down to the floor. "We haven't known each other that long, and we're hardly ever alone together. But when you kiss me I feel...I feel happy, I feel safe. When I'm in your arms I just...I feel so different, and I honestly can't tell you if its love or not. But I can tell you I hope it is, and I would be overjoyed if it is."

Loki let out a breath and smiled at her, taking her hands in his and allowing their fingers to intertwine.

"No man will ever feel the same happiness as I do tonight," He whispered, allowing his lips to caress her ear. "For they are not in the presence of the beauty that Valhalla has so graciously sent me."

She smiled as he kissed her ear, and she closed her eyes as he moved his lips to her temple, then down to her cheek, then finally letting them meet her lips once more. He picked her up in his arms and spun her around as he made his way to the middle of the room, and she giggled as he returned her to the ground. He pulled back from her and smiled, resting his forehead on hers again.

"I have to go back to my chambers," She said, breaking away from his embrace.

"No," He said, pulling her back to him. "Stay, please."

"Loki, I can't. It's not proper for us to even be doing this, especially here."

He seemed reluctant as he stared into her eyes, but nodded. "Very well, then," He said, pecking her lips. "I will wait impatiently for the sun to rise, so that I may see your beautiful face once more."

A blush rose to her cheeks and she smiled, kissing him lightly.

"Goodnight, Loki," She murmured.

"Goodnight, darling heart."

* * *

**Luciana and Loki had a cute moment...AND THEY'RE IN LOVE!  
**

**But don't worry my loyal little readers, this story is _far_ from over.**

**Anyways, please review! It really lets me know how I'm doing and encourages me to continue the story!  
**


	17. Chapter Seventeen

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story**

* * *

"Good morning, Luciana. Did you sleep well?" Frigga asked.

Loki looked up from his plate and smiled as he saw Luciana walk through the doors. She caught his smile and sent one back, walking towards the free seat beside him.

"Yes, I did, thank you." She replied to Frigga, smiling at the queen. She felt a cold hand grab hers under the table, and she smiled as she looked at her food.

"Good morning," Loki said quietly, squeezing her hand gently.

"Good morning," She replied, smiling wider as she felt Loki's thumb rub her hand.

The rest of breakfast was eaten in relative silence from Loki and Luciana; Odin, Frigga, and Thor chatting as they ate silently, holding hands under the table. Every so often Loki would bring her hand up to his lips and kiss it when no one was watching, and Luciana would try to contain her blush, to no avail.

"Loki?" Thor asked, breaking his brother out of his gaze on Luciana.

"What? Oh, yes, Thor?" Loki asked, slightly irritated by his brother.

"Do not forget we are going to be sparring with Sif and the Warriors Three today after we finish eating."

"Oh, right," Loki said, sounding slightly crestfallen. "We did plan that didn't we?"

"Yes," Thor replied standing up. "And if you're finished I'd like to go now."

Thor didn't wait for Loki's reply and he walked over to his younger brother and pulled him away from the table, unknowingly yanking him away from Luciana's grasp.

"Thor!" Loki exclaimed irritably, struggling to remove himself from his brother's grip.

Thor only chuckled as he picked Loki up and slung him over his shoulder, causing the younger prince to groan in embarrassment. The other three occupants of the table chuckled at the scene and watched as the two brothers left the room.

"Boys," Luciana said rolling her eyes, and Frigga chuckled in agreement.

* * *

That day, Luciana found, had been particularly boring and lonesome.

Usually she would have found something to do with Loki, or at the very least Frigga. But since both royals were busy, she had spent the day wandering the castle chatting with maids and the occasional guard. She was somewhat shocked by her boredom, due to the fact that at home she had always found at least one way to entertain herself. But for some reason, the castle seemed lonely without a companion.

Dinner, what she hoped would bring her entertainment, was equally uneventful. Thor had decided to go with the Warriors Three to a tavern in the city, bringing Loki along with them. Though she had taken the time to better get to know Sif, Luciana was quite disappointed by the dullness of the meal.

Upon returning to her chambers that night, she had found out she was a restless person and wasn't fond of being alone. Since she always had someone to keep her occupied at home, she had never felt like she was without company or activity. But at the palace, for what she thought of as a vacation, she didn't have anything to keep herself or at least her mind occupied.

She sighed as she leaned on the railing of her chamber balcony, the night-time air warm despite the sun's absence. She watched as guards stood around the garden, all unaware that they were being watched by the youngest daughter of Cyrus.

She heard a knocking on her door and she practically flew to the door, eager for company. She yanked the door open violently and her caller jumped at the aggressiveness of it.

"Loki," She said, surprised. "I thought you were at a tavern with Thor and the others."

"I was," Loki said, stepping into her chambers. "But while they made drunken fools of themselves, I slipped away and came back to see you." He closed the door behind him and took her hand, bringing it up to his lips and kissing it. "I've missed you," He said, pulling her closer to him.

"I've missed you too," She replied, smiling as he kissed her hand once more.

"Come with me, I'm going to take you somewhere." He told her, opening the door and ushering her through it.

"Where?" She asked, amused.

"It's a surprise."

"Should I be worried?"

"Possibly."

"Oh, Valhalla help me."

* * *

"Are your eyes still closed?"

"Yes, Loki."

"Good."

Halfway down one of the corridors of the castle, Loki had ordered Luciana to close her eyes stating that he didn't want to 'ruin her surprise too early for his liking'. All Luciana knew right now was that he had led her outside and they had been walking for quite some time now.

"Where are we going, anyway?" She asked, walking slowly so she wouldn't trip.

"I've already told you a thousand times; it's a surprise." He replied, holding both of her hands to guide her.

The smell of sea salt reached her nose and she heard waves crashing. "Are we near the ocean?" She asked, darting her head around despite her vision's absence.

"Open your eyes and tell me," Loki said, stopping and letting go of her hands.

She opened her eyes and proving her suspicions was a beach, the ocean waves crashing on the shore. "We are," She said as he walked behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and placing his head on her shoulder.

He moved a hand to hers and grasped it tightly, bringing it up to his lips and kissing it. He removed his head from her shoulder and his arms from her waist, still grasping her hand as he led her closer to the water. They walked along the shore in silence, Loki's arm wrapped around her shoulder as she leaned into him.

Suddenly she felt Loki pick her up in his arms and carry her bridal style as he spun her around. She let out a small scream and laughed as he continued to spin her around, laughing along with her. After awhile of this, Loki dropped onto the sand and Luciana laid on top of him, still laughing. Her laughter was abruptly cut off by a snort and she covered her mouth, greatly embarrassed.

Loki laughed and removed her hands from her face. "I still don't see why you grow so flustered about that. I think it's lovely."

"You think my snort is lovely?" She asked in amused disbelief.

"I think everything about you is lovely," He said, letting go of her hands and cupping her face. "And no force in the Nine Realms will ever convince me otherwise."

Luciana couldn't contain her blush. "I swear, ever since I met you I've blushed more than I ever have in my entire life."

He smiled and let his lips touch hers, allowing his hands to go to the back of her head and his fingers to comb through her hair.

She returned his kiss and allowed it to deepen, putting her hands on Loki's chest. He moved one of his hand to her back and rubbed it as they embraced, allowing his other hand to entangle itself in her hair. They passionately kissed as the waves continued to crash on the shore, and the night-time wind blew peacefully along with it, bringing a chill.

Luciana shivered as the cold wind hit her skin, and she broke off the kiss. Loki moved her off of him and placed her beside him, causing her to sit up. Loki sat up as well and conjured a blanket as he did so, wrapping it around them both. He laid back down and pulled her along with him, his arms wrapped around her waist.

"Better?" He asked, putting a piece of windswept hair behind her ear.

"Yes, thank you," She said, putting a hand on his as it caressed her cheek.

They laid on their sides as they listened to the ocean, their hair getting blown slightly as the wind went by. Loki pulled her closer to him and nuzzled his head in her hair, kissing the top of her head as he closed his eyes. She buried her face in his chest and listened to the sound of his steady heartbeat, raising a hand up to put a strand of hair back into place. She wrapped her arms around his torso and closed her eyes, smiling slightly as Loki kissed her hair.

He took his head out of her hair and moved down slightly so his lips could meet hers with a passionate kiss. He brought his hands up and cupped her face, deepening the kiss for a few moments before breaking away from the kiss. "I love you," He whispered, pulling the blanket closer around them.

"I love you too," She replied softly, her hand moving to his cheek.

At that, he crashed his lips onto hers and pulled her even closer to him. As the deep, passionate kiss carried on, Luciana felt him pick her off the sand with him and slowly stand up, letting the blanket fall to the ground. His hands went to her arms and wrapped them around his neck before snaking themselves around her waist. He hoisted her up and spun around, laughing under the kiss as she let out a yelp of surprise.

She broke away from the kiss and gasped for air. "Loki, let me down! I'm getting dizzy!"

He laughed as he set her onto the sand, steadying her as she stumbled slightly. He bent down and picked up the discarded blanket, shaking the sand from it before wrapping it around her. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her to him, kissing her forehead as she placed her head on his chest, listening to the sound of his heart beat as she wrapped her arms around his torso. He swayed her as they went in a slow circle, their eyes closed as they held each other.

If they could have stayed that way forever, they would have.

"Luciana?" Loki asked, breaking what seemed like hours of sweet, peaceful silence. His eyebrows furrowed as no response came from her, and he looked down.

His face broke out into a smile as he realized she had fallen asleep, no longer able to hear him.

He carefully manoeuvred himself back down onto the sand, and gently laid down, Luciana's head still resting on his chest. He adjusted the blanket so it covered them both before wrapping one arm around her waist and holding her hand in the other. He turned his head slightly to kiss her forehead, letting his lips linger there before resting his nose on the spot.

He listened to the sounds of the ocean and Luciana's steady breathing, his eyes getting heavy. He closed his eyes as he squeezed her hand, allowing himself to be lulled into a peaceful slumber, a small smile on his face.

* * *

"Darling heart," Loki said softly as he shook Luciana's shoulder. "It's time to wake up."

Luciana's eyes fluttered open and she looked up at Loki, who leaned over her with a smile. Her eyebrows furrowed as she looked at her surroundings, shading her eyes with her hand as the sun shone on her face. "Were we here all night?" She asked, still lying in the sand.

He nodded and leaned down to plant a kiss on her nose. "You're so beautiful in your sleep, you know."

"My sleep?" She asked, her eyebrows furrowing once more. Her eyes then widened in realization. "We slept together?" Her voiced was laced with shock and slight disbelief as she sat up, staring at Loki. "We didn't...do anything, did we?"

He smirked mischievously. "I would have remembered that."

She rolled her eyes and sighed. "I can't believe we...We best get back to the castle."

"Not yet," He said, pecking her lips repeatedly.

"Loki, we have to go back," She said sternly through his kisses.

He only chuckled as he kissed her, moving his hands to cup her face as he deepened the kiss.

"Loki," Luciana said sternly, pulling away from the kiss. "I love you, but-" She was cut off by his lips meeting hers. She pulled away again. "But we have to go back to the castle." He continued to ignore her as he kissed her, muffling her protests.

Her eyes narrowed towards the ocean as Loki gifted her kisses, and she raised a hand towards it. A ball of water rose up from the ocean and flew towards Loki at terrifying speed. Luciana broke away from the kiss just in time before the water hit Loki, and he cried out.

"What the-" He exclaimed, his hair dripping wet.

She could hardly contain her giggles as she watched the prince shake off the water and look around. His eyes scanned the beach before settling themselves on her.

"So you're behind this," He said, glaring playfully at her.

She nodded as she covered her mouth, trying to stop herself from laughing.

"Oh, you're in trouble now," He said in mock seriousness, standing up.

She laughed and quickly stood up, bounding past him and towards the direction of the castle. "You're going to have to catch me!" She called to him, laughing as she ran away from the beach, Loki not far behind.

* * *

**A romantic moment between Luciana and Loki, courtesy of me.**

**Please review!**


	18. Chapter Eighteen

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

Loki put his hands on his forehead as he laid in his bed, practically drenched in sweat.

This wasn't the first time he had felt this way; whenever the Asgardian Summer reached its highest he would be stricken down with a fever. He hadn't had the faintest idea as to why this happened, but every summer he'd feel light-headed, acquire a headache, sweat, shake, and become quite irritable. He felt as if he was on fire, and for the life of him he couldn't cool down.

His head throbbed as he heard knocking on his door, and he frowned. "What is it?" He asked irritably, wondering who would be bothering him.

The door opened and the head of Luciana popped inside. "Sorry, I didn't mean to bother you. Should I leave?" Her quiet tone easy on Loki's ears.

"No," He said, sitting up and managing a smile. "I'm always happy to see you, come right in."

She grinned at him and entered the room, closing the door. "Your mother told me you weren't feeling well," She walked over to the bed, her hands placed in front of her. "So I came to see how you were feeling."

"I'm alright," He said, laying his head back on the pillows. "Just a bit warm."

She brought her hand up to his forehead and frowned. "That is not 'warm', Loki, that's burning." Her voice stern, but still quiet. "And you're sweating like mad! Have you had any water?"

He shook his head and she let out an exasperated sigh. "No water? It's a miracle you haven't died..." She muttered, conjuring up a basin of water, a goblet, and a cloth. She filled the goblet and put in his hands. "Drink it; I rather not have you die of dehydration."

"You don't have to mother me, darling heart," He said, smiling at her.

"Yes I do," She said, dipping the cloth in the basin. "If you're not going to take care of yourself then someone has to do it." She wrung the water out of the cloth and sat on the edge of the bed. "And it's beyond me as to why you haven't asked a servant to tend to you."

"I don't like being tended on much."

"You don't?" She asked, tilting her head. "Fine then, I'll just leave." Shrugging she stood from the bed and went to leave.

"Wait, no, no, no," He said, grabbing her wrist. "You didn't let me finish. I was going to say I didn't like being tended on by _servants_, you I have no problem with."

She rolled her eyes and sat down with a satisfied smile. She brought the cloth up to his forehead and delicately dabbed away the beads of sweat.

"That feels nice," Loki said quietly, enjoying the feeling of the cool cloth on his skin.

"That's good; it's doing its job then."

He closed his eyes as Luciana blotted his face with the cloth, every so often dipping it in the basin and wringing out the excess water. He brought the goblet of water up to his lips and drank, the cold liquid soothing to his feverish state. His head continued to throb as the minutes went by in silence, and he could feel himself shaking as he brought the goblet to his lips.

He enjoyed the feeling of the cool cloth dabbing his forehead, and relished in the fact that Luciana was the one who was tending to him instead of some servant. He reached over and blindly grabbed her free hand, bringing it to his lips. He kissed it lightly in gratitude and held it tightly, his thumb rubbing her skin. His breath was unusually warm, as was his skin. He usually had a chill about him that, though startling, was soothing to the touch.

"Thank you," His quiet tone reached her ears after many silent moments.

She smiled at the prince as she wiped away the beads of sweat that formed. "You're welcome." She took the now empty goblet away from him and placed it on the bedside table, smiling as he let out a sound of discomfort as her hand left his.

"Brother!" A male voice bellowed, and Loki's door violently slammed open. The two jumped at the sound, and Luciana stood up from the bed, hiding the cloth behind her back.

Loki's head throbbed horribly and he put his hands on his temples, frowning as he looked towards the door. "Thor," He said through clenched teeth as he brother walked to the bed. "Why. Are. You. Here?" Each word separated by a short, angry breath.

"Mother told me you were unwell," He said, his voice loud and seemingly cheerful. "I came to see you!"

"Well, you've seen me," Loki said, rubbing his face in exasperation. "Now get out."

"Ah, you want your privacy, brother?"

"Yes, now leave."

"Very well," Thor said, taking Luciana's arm. "Come along, Luciana, my brother wishes for his privacy." He began to lead her to the door, and she dropped the cloth lamely behind her.

"Wait, no, Thor-" Loki began to protest, sitting up. "I didn't mean she had to leave as well!"

"You can join me to a sparring match, it will be quite entertaining," Thor ignored his brother as he continued to drag away the girl.

"Wait, Thor," Loki was basically shouting, his own voice painful to his head. "Thor! Thor!" The door closed behind the two and he let out an exasperated sigh as he fell back onto the pillows.

"Damn you, Thor."

* * *

"Can you use a sword?" Thor asked, handing her the sharp blade.

"Sort of?" Luciana said, but it came out as a question.

"Daggers? Axes? Arrows?" He asked.

"I'm a sorcerer's daughter," She said. "The closest thing I've ever used to a weapon is a staff, and I failed miserably at that."

Thor laughed at her statement. "How does one fail at a staff?"

"I don't know."

"Well today you'll learn how to spar with a sword," He said handing her a shield.

"I will?" She asked, slightly frightened for her life.

"Yes! Now come on, it'll be great fun."

"Uh, Thor, I'm not really sure-" She began to protest.

"Luciana!" A woman's voice called, and she turned around to look at its source. Frigga was walking towards the two. "Hello Thor," She said to her son as she stopped. "Luciana, would you like to accompany me for a walk in the garden? That is, of course, unless you want to spar with Thor?"

"Well, I can't say no to you, my queen," Luciana responded, handing Thor the sword. "Sorry, Thor."

"It's quite alright!" Thor said, smiling.

"Yes, well, come along Luciana. Good day, Thor." Frigga said, smiling at her son and Luciana, before pulling the latter away.

* * *

"I noticed your discomfort about sword fighting and I thought I'd come to your rescue." Frigga chuckled as she walked with Luciana among the flowers.

Luciana chuckled along with the Queen and sighed. "Yes, well I haven't had much use for swords. Not when I have magic."

"I've never understood why sorcerers are discriminated against," Frigga said. "Magic is the soul of Asgard and is what keeps it prosperous."

"It's because sorcerers, witches, wizards, and other magicians go deeper into the practice, I think," Luciana replied. "We unearth powerful forms of magic and meddle with forces we probably shouldn't. It's hard to trust people who have that sort of abilities."

"Yes, I suppose. But the entire time you've been here, I never once thought of you, or your family, as a threat. I hope that the rest of Asgard will one day think the same."

"I hope so too." Luciana smiled.

There was a moment of silence as they walked among the flora, listening to the chirping birds and running of the water from a nearby fountain.

"I've noticed you and Loki have become quite close," Frigga said as she admired a brightly coloured flower.

Luciana couldn't help but tense up slightly. Upon returning from the beach two days ago, she and Loki had made an agreement not to tell anyone about their secret courtship out of fear that it would become too formal or even be forced to end. She didn't like the idea of keeping secrets and sneaking around, but Loki, curse his silver tongue, had talked her into it. And during those two days they spent time together in the library or in an empty corridor, hidden from sight.

"Yes, he's become a great friend of mine," She finally responded, admiring a flower herself. "He's very intelligent, and quite kind. You've raised him well."

"He is, isn't he? It's such a shame he isn't feeling well, I'm sure he would have loved to spend the day with you."

"Actually, I'm feeling much better now." A male voice said, and the two women turned around.

Loki was standing there, his hands clasped behind his back and a toothless grin on his face. Luciana noticed he still looked flustered, and she could see the beads of sweat forming at his hairline. He still shook slightly as well, though it was clear he was trying to appear as if he was perfectly fine.

Her eyes narrowed toward Frigga, who's eyes did the same to her, both of them knowing he was far from fine.

"Well that's wonderful, Loki," Frigga said, smiling at her son. Though her tone was at a reasonable level, Loki still winced at her voice, his head without a doubt aching horribly. "Now you can walk with us."

"Oh, right," He said, seeming uncertain. "I was actually hoping-"

"Yes, Loki?" Luciana cut him off, raising an eyebrow.

Loki looked at her. "What I was going to say was that I was actually hoping that I could do just that."

"Well, that's wonderful," Frigga said. "We we're just going to walk over to the roses."

He nodded and started ahead and Frigga grabbed Luciana's arm. "Make sure he gets back to his chambers," She whispered. "Stay with him if you must, just make sure he's back in his bed before he collapses."

Luciana nodded and went after Loki, who disappeared among the flowers and bushes.

* * *

Luciana found the feverish prince at a fountain, splashing the cold water on his face.

"Loki?" She asked quietly and he whipped around.

"Oh, Luciana," He said, wiping the water off his face. "I was just cooling myself off before I joined you and mother. I'll be there in a moment."

"No you won't," She said, walking over to him. "Why did you get out of bed? It's obvious you're still ill!"

He sighed and leaned on the fountain. "I was hoping to spend the day with you by my side, that is until Thor so rudely whisked you away." His voice went bitter as he splashed more water on his face, relieved as the cool liquid hit his skin.

"How did you know I was with your mother?" She asked.

"I didn't until I found Thor, who told me you had left with her. So I had to walk all the way from the armoury to the garden just to find you."

"Well you didn't have to! You've should have stayed in bed, Loki."

"Yes, well it's too late now. Come darling heart, we'll go meet mother by the roses." He said, taking her hand.

"No," She said, taking her hand from his. "Go back to your chambers."

"But, darling heart, I-"

"Loki," She said softly, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Go back to your chambers, please. You aren't feeling well and I don't want you to get worse."

He closed his eyes and rested his forehead on hers, his burning flesh warm on her skin. "Not without you."

"Fine," She said, kissing his nose. "I'll come."

* * *

**Bad chapter, I know. But just like Loki, I have a fever and my writing skills aren't at their finest. **

**I honestly can't believe my fever gave me inspiration for this chapter...**

**Review, please.**


	19. Chapter Nineteen

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

Luciana sat on a bench in the palace garden, a book placed on her lap. Her grey eyes scanned the pages, and she was oblivious to the person who approached her as she soaked in the words, mumbling as she read. The person sat down and cleared their throat, making her jump.

"Oh, Loki," She said, smiling as she looked up from her page. "It's nice to see you."

"Sorry," Loki said, looking at her book. "I didn't mean to interrupt your reading."

"Its fine," She said, waving him off as she shut the book. "How is your fever today? You nearly fainted when we were going back to your chambers yesterday."

He chuckled. "I'm better today. I'm still a bit tired, but I'm not as warm."

"Well, that's good," She said, leaning over and kissing his cheek. "I was worried about you." She rested her head on his shoulder and wrapped her arms around him. "I wouldn't want anything to happen to you."

He smiled at her and planted a kiss on her nose. "Nothing will ever happen to me, darling heart."

"Brother!" Thor voice boomed over the garden, and Luciana jumped as she let go of Loki.

"Why is it always him?" Loki mumbled bitterly as Thor continued to call for him.

"Brother, where are you?" Thor called out, his loud voice echoing around the garden.

"Come with me," Loki whispered, grabbing Luciana's hand. He stood up and led her away from the garden and into the castle, away from a bewildered Thor. He took her into an empty corridor, and every so often looked behind him to see anyone.

"Good," He said, smirking as he pulled Luciana closer to him. "We're alone."

"Loki, what if someone should see us?"

"No one is going to see us, darling, trust me."

"What about the gatekeeper, Heimdall? He sees all, does he not?"

"He won't see us. I've mastered the ability to shroud myself, and anyone I choose, from Heimdall's sight. We might as well be in our own little world."

With that he placed his lips on her, enveloping her in a passionate kiss. She smiled under the kiss and wrapped her arms around his neck as his went around her waist. Soon, with the need for air, she broke away from the kiss and rested her head on his chest, his heartbeat now a soothing rhythm to her. He raised a hand and gently placed it on her cheek, his thumb rubbing the skin softly.

"Brother, where are you?" Thor's voice boomed from a distance, and Loki groaned as the sweet moment was shattered.

"Honestly, can't he find anyone else to spend time with?" He said bitterly, letting go of Luciana as Thor entered the corridor.

"Ah, Loki!" Thor exclaimed happily, walking up towards the two. "I've been looking for you everywhere!"

"What do you want, Thor?" The younger prince asked, irritated.

Loki's annoyance seemed unnoticed by Thor, who smiled as he looked at his brother. "I came to tell you-"

"Thor, I'm spending the day with Luciana," Loki interrupted, gesturing to her. "I can't do whatever it is you want me to."

Thor chuckled. "That wasn't what I was going to say, brother, be patient. Father wishes to speak with you."

"About what?"

"Something about the guards being unable to remove their helmets."

Luciana snorted and covered her mouth as she giggled. "Oh, Loki."

"Right," Loki sighed, clasping his hands together in front of him. "Well, I shouldn't keep him waiting. Ah, Luciana?"

"Hmm?"

"Will you be ever so kind as to wait for me in the library?"

"Of course."

* * *

Luciana stood patiently at a bookshelf, her eyes scanning the different books. Two arms came from behind and snaked themselves around her waist, making her jump.

"Relax," Loki's voice said softly, and his chin landed on her shoulder. "It's just me."

She calmed down and leaned into him, her hands going onto his. "I didn't even hear you come in."

He chuckled and kissed her neck gently. "You were too absorbed in the books."

"How much trouble did you get into with your father?"

"He wasn't pleased with me, to say the least."

"I suspect not."

Loki took an arm off her and reached up towards the bookshelf, selecting a thick book. "This one is quite good, its poetry."

She smiled and took the book from him, inspecting the leather. "Read it to me?"

He chuckled and pulled away from her. "Of course," He said as he walked over to a table and pulled out two chairs, gesturing for her to sit.

They spent hours in the library, side by side. Loki read her every poem in the large book, occasionally reading a poem twice if she enjoyed it. She rested her head on his shoulder as he read, the sound of his voice relaxing to her as he recited each stanza. Between poems, the prince would kiss her head and whisper loving words to her, her lips curling into a smile each time.

"Loki," Luciana said softly, breaking Loki out of a poem. "We should go to dinner."

"I don't see why we can't stay here," He said, kissing her head. "We can stay here alone for hours if we wish."

She shook her head and took it off his shoulder. "Someone will come looking for us. Besides, I'm quite hungry."

Loki sighed. "Well, if my darling heart is hungry, then I shouldn't deprive her of food any longer." He stood up from his chair and offered her his hand. "Shall we be off, then?"

She smiled and took his hand. "We shall."

* * *

**Two updates in two days, that's a new record! **

**Anyways, sorry this chapter sucks. I just really wanted another sweet moment between Luciana and Loki before I go into some dramatic storyline.  
Though, its occurred to me that I probably shouldn't have written this while I'm sick with a chest cold and am a severe ********asthmatic...  
**Oh well, people make mistakes.

**I find reviews to be quite lovely!**

**PS. I probably won't update for about a week, possibly even two, because I can hardly breathe.  
**

**PPS. Any advice on how to get my breathing back? My inhalers suck.**


	20. Chapter Twenty

**So after a brief, but terrifying, trip to the hospital, I'm still sick, but I'm a bit better which means my writing will be better as well.  
Oh and thank you guys for your support while I was really sick, it really means a lot!  
**

**PS. There's a bit of a time skip in this chapter, only to the point where Luciana leaves the castle because that's when things get...interesting.**

**PPS. As a get well present from my mother, I got a, crappy, but effective photo editor. So, I changed the cover image for this story again, and I changed the one for Hardest of Hearts! Now Luciana is in them! (Yes, I know that's actually Katy Perry but to me she fits the character perfectly, even if she isn't an actress.)  
**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"I'm very tempted to lock you away somewhere so you don't have to go back." Loki said, his head resting in Luciana's lap as they sat in the garden.

She chuckled as her fingers combed through his hair.

All good things come to an end, and that rang true here. That month at the palace had been wonderful for the two of them. They spent some point of everyday together, and every second of the others company made them fall even more in love to the point where they couldn't stand to be apart. But there month was up, and Luciana would be returning home, much to Loki's bitterness.

"That wasn't a joke," He told her, absent-mindedly pulling out a blade of grass from the ground.

"I know full well that it wasn't," She said.

"I really don't want you to go."

"But I have to, Loki. I'll miss you greatly, but I have to go home."

"Well, you won't be home for long. I'll make sure you return to the castle, even if I have drag you here myself."

Luciana laughed and leaned down, pecking his lips. "The carriage should be ready now, I'll have to go."

Her happy smile turned into a sad one, and she looked into his eyes. "Farewell, Loki."

He sighed in response and sat up. He placed his fingers under her chin and pulled her face towards his, allowing their lips to touch as a final parting.

"Farewell, darling heart."

* * *

"Where is she?" Astrid asked, running towards the carriage outside her home. "Where is my dear Luciana?"

Luciana stepped out of the carriage and smiled at her mother. "I'm right here, mother."

The older woman smiled as her daughter stepped out of the carriage, then through her arms around her. "Oh how I've missed you!"

"I've missed you too." Luciana smiled, returning her mother's hug.

"Well, I hope I'm not being forgotten," A male's voice said, and Cyrus appeared at the doorway to the house.

"Father!" Luciana exclaimed, letting go of her mother and running to embrace her father. "I've missed you as well!"

He chuckled as he hugged his daughter. "I'll get your trunk. You go on inside and see if you can't find your sister."

She nodded as she let go of her father, flashing him a warm smile before entering her home.

Cyrus watched the figure of his daughter disappear down a hall, and he sighed. He looked back at Astrid, whose face was etched with worry. She swallowed and looked at her hands, letting out a shaky sigh as she heard the driver of the carriage place her daughter's trunk on the ground before going off back to the castle.

"We'll tell her tonight?" She asked looking at her husband.

"Yes," He replied solemnly. "Tonight after dinner."

* * *

"And are you telling me the truth when you say Loki didn't do anything?" Viveca quizzed her sister as they stood in their father's study after dinner.

"Yes," Luciana lied, trying to mask her smile at his name.

The elder Cyrusdottir crossed her arms and eyed the girl suspiciously, trying to determine if she was truthful.

Luciana felt uneasy under her sister's hard gaze, but hid it well. She couldn't let anyone know about her and Loki, _especially_ not Viveca. She could imagine the fit her family would throw if they were to find out, and she didn't want to know what Loki's family would do. So she held her posture and silently prayed.

Viveca finally sighed. "I don't know if you're lying or not, but it doesn't matter anyway."

"What do you-?"

She was cut off by the study door opening and Cyrus and Astrid walking in, the latter looking slightly distressed.

"Good, everyone's here," Cyrus said as he sat at his desk, looking over his family. "Sit."

The three sat on the armchairs around the room and watched him. He was silent as he stared at his youngest, but her let out a sigh.

"This matter concerns you greatly, Luciana," He said. "Over the past month your mother and I have been making very complex decisions concerning your future. Now, my dear, this might seem quite sudden and unexpected, but your mother and I believe that in time you'll see it to be the best arrangement made possible for you."

"What we have decided is not quite along the lines of tradition, usually with this sort of thing we deal with the eldest first," He gestured to Viveca. "But it has been agreed that this arrangement is much better suited for you."

Luciana looked at her father, horribly confused. "What do you mean 'arrangement'? What arrangement?"

Astrid sighed. "Luciana," She said solemnly, and her daughter looked at her. "You are to be married to Ramsay Talonson."

Luciana's jaw dropped to the floor, and she felt as if she had been slapped across the face.

Married? Why in the Nine Realms would they want her to get married before Viveca? And why would they tell her the day she returned home? Suddenly, all the pieces of the puzzle fell into place. Her mother's tears; her being sent to the castle; Viveca's lack of anger towards Loki. It had all been so they could make the wedding arrangement.

Her heart broke in half. She didn't love Ramsay, she hardly even knew him, and now they wanted them to be married? She loved Loki, she felt comfortable with Loki. Even if he wasn't her lover he was still her best friend, and they would always have an immense amount of love for each other. She wanted to be with Loki, but alas, she was promised to the son of Talon.

"Wha- Why?" Was all she managed to choke out, fighting back tears.

"Because we deem it a very good arrangement for your best interest." Cyrus said.

"But- But I don't want to marry Ramsay!" She exclaimed, standing up.

"Luciana, sit-" Astrid said as she grabbed her daughter's hand, but was cut off.

"No, no I will not sit down!" Luciana cried. "Why do I have to be married? Viveca should have gone first, it's not fair that you're making me get married before her, especially to someone I hardly even know!"

"That's why, next week, you'll be spending time with Ramsay and his family," Cyrus said.

"That's not going to change the fact that I don't love him!"

"Overtime you may grow to love him; I did with your mother."

"That's completely different! You and mother were the best of friends before you were set to be married! It's easier to fall in love with a friend!"

"Well, then if that's the case, then you and Ramsay can become friends."

"No! I refuse to marry him!"

By now the two were screaming at each other, Cyrus standing up from his desk and tears streaming down Luciana's face.

"You are going to marry Ramsay whether you like it, or not. That is final!" Cyrus yelled.

Luciana glared at her father, tears still flowing down her face. She whirled around stormed out of the room, slamming the door shut behind her. Cyrus sighed and sat down on his chair, running a hand through his hair.

"I thought you said your sister took a liking to Ramsay," He addressed Viveca tiredly.

The girl shrugged. "That's what she told me," She lied. "Perhaps sending her to the castle wasn't the best idea, father. Perhaps absurd thoughts have been placed into her head by the amount of freedom you gave her."

"No," Cyrus sighed. "The castle is a fine place; I don't think that it had anything to do with her behaviour."

"What about the dragon?"

"Odin had assured me that his sons would have found some way to that castle, and without Luciana there they would have without a doubt been killed. I know you aren't fond of the royals, Viveca, but don't blame them for your sister's new-found rebellious streak."

Viveca scowled, but quickly covered it up. "I'm going to speak to her; perhaps I'll get her to see reason."

* * *

Luciana buried her head in her pillow as she cried, her loud sobs muffled by the cushion.

She couldn't believe what was happening. She was to be married to Ramsay, her father's newest apprentice. But there was one problem, she would never be happy with Ramsay for her heart had already been taken by Loki Odinson, and she was never going to get it back.

A knocking on her door broke her out of her sorrow. "Go away!" She shouted as she raised her head from her pillow.

The door opened and Viveca stepped in. "Oh, sister, I hate to see you sad." She said as she walked towards the bed. "Why are you crying? You knew this would happen eventually."

"Yes, but I thought you'd be first!" Luciana exclaimed.

"But," Viveca said, sitting down. "You were fully prepared for your own marriage. Why the sudden change of heart?"

The younger sister didn't respond and she buried her head back in her pillow.

"I asked them why they chose you to be married first," Viveca started. "They said it's because they want to keep you away from Loki."

Luciana literally felt her heart ache, and her head shot out of the pillow. "What? Why?" She asked, her voice nearly a whine. "They can't stop me from seeing him!"

The elder sister sighed. "They fear the effects he's been having on you."

"Effects? What effects?"

"The rebelliousness, the defiance, the emotional scenes. Luciana, he has changed you."

"He hasn't changed me!"

"You went after a dragon, Luciana, which is something my sister would never do! Besides, father and mother have forbid you to protest against it. You can't stop your marriage. There's nothing you can do."

Luciana let out a sob at this.

There was nothing she could do.

* * *

**Viveca, Viveca, Viveca, you truly are wicked.**

**Review?**


	21. Chapter Twenty-One

**I must say, I'm loving how all of you are fuming over Luciana's arranged marriage. And now I'm going to add more fuel to the fire by giving you this chapter.**

**Be warned, you** _**WILL**_ **hate me.**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story. (AND ANY ORIGINAL PLOT LINE FROM THIS DAY FORTH.)  
**

* * *

Viveca smirked as she walked into her bedroom, her brown eyes glinting.

Over the course of the week, she had been consoling Luciana, who was still heavily distraught by her engagement. Viveca had done her job though;

She had told her poor sister that her parents had forbid her to see Loki, which was hardly the case. She also said that they forbid her from protesting the engagement, helping to put her elaborate plan in place, making sure to stress the topic to her every day.

It would be an understatement to say Viveca didn't like Loki; she _loathed_ him.

She hated everything about the prince; his childish ways, his irresponsible attitude, everything.

She hated that he, out of all people, was the one to catch her sister's heart. She hated his infatuation with her sister, and she was seething at the thought of her sister taken by him. She knew the minute she protested against her engagement that she had fallen in love with Loki.

Despite her bitterness, Viveca smiled as she plopped onto her bed.

It was only a matter of time before everything fell into place.

Only a matter of time.

* * *

Silent tears fell down Luciana's face and onto her pillow as she laid in her bed, unable to sleep.

She still hadn't fully processed her engagement, and still wasn't sure she wanted to. She would rather feel as she did that last morning with Loki; happy and in his company. Instead, she felt the exact opposite; sad and alone.

She was never allowed to see Loki again, she was being forced to marry, and she had to go on the rest of her life with a shattered heart. Nothing, it seemed, would ever go her way. And to worsen her heartbreak, tomorrow she was leaving her home again, but not to go to the palace. No, she was going to meet Ramsay's family, who were quite eager for her to join the clan. Why she had to suffer through all this, she didn't know. All she knew now was that fate was her enemy.

She pulled the blanket over her head and let out a sob, fresh tears pouring from her eyes.

She could run away, but where would she go? To the castle? No, once Odin learned that she had run away from home he'd send her right back, and she'd be in even more turmoil then she already was. She live out her days alone in the forest; living in solitude in a small hut among the shadows of the trees, perhaps with a bird or mouse as company. But no, she'd be too lonely without anyone with her. Despite wanting to do anything else but marry Ramsay, she couldn't be alone.

She heard a tapping on her window but she ignored it, thinking it was just a bird or a branch. The tapping continued to the point where she nearly screamed in annoyance. She ripped the blankets off of her and walked towards the window peering into the darkness outside. What she saw, perched on the tree outside her window, shocked her.

It was Loki.

"Loki?" She said, opening the window. "What are you doing here?"

He smiled at her before climbing into her bedroom, clad in armour complete with a golden horned helmet and a green cape.

"I came to see you," He said as she shut the window. "I needed to speak to you about..." He trailed off as he noticed her puffy eyes and tear stained face. "Darling heart, have you been crying?"

Luciana brought her hands up to her face and wiped at her eyes, shaking her head.

"Darling heart," He said concerned, and he went over and cupped her face. "What's troubling you?"

She shook her head again and avoided his gaze, her grey eyes staring at the floor.

"Luciana," He said solemnly. "Please tell me."

With that, he crashed his lips onto hers and enveloped her in a passionate kiss. Tears continued to flow from her eyes, and he wiped them away with his thumb as he deepened the kiss. She abruptly broke away from the embrace with a sob, and Loki looked at her with concern.

"My-my parents," She choked out, removing his hands from her face. "They-they-"

She couldn't get the words out and she crossed her arms, looking at the ground.

"They what, Luciana?" He asked softly.

She let out a shaky sigh. "They-they've arranged for me to be married to my father's new apprentice."

Loki's heart shattered at her words, and he stared at her in disbelief. She couldn't be engaged, not after what they had been through.

"W-What?" He asked, desperately clinging onto the last hope that he had heard her wrong.

"They are going to marry me off," She said, her voice shaking. "But I don't want to be married to him; I can't be married to him! I'm in love with you."

Loki pulled her into him, and she rested her head on his chest as more tears fell down her face. He rested his chin on the top of her head, and he rubbed her back as she cried. That's all he could do, he couldn't find any words to comfort her.

A silver tongue rendered useless by heartbreak.

* * *

Loki sat in the palace garden, his helmet sitting on his lap.

He had stayed with Luciana for another hour before returning to the castle, incredibly miserable.

What she had told him broke his heart. They weren't to be in contact anymore, and she was to be married to Ramsay Talonson, a name he quickly grew to hate. She told him how alone she felt; how she felt like no one in her family even considered her feelings. But there was nothing they could do about it; the wedding was already in process, with no way to stop it.

Loki considered begging with Cyrus and Astrid, but that would reveal that he and Luciana were in a secret courtship, and they could both get into great trouble for it. It was one thing to be in a courtship with someone, it was another to have one in secret between a prince and a sorceress. He didn't want her to be badly affected by it, so he reluctantly discarded his plan of pleading.

"Loki?" The familiar voice of Frigga asked and Loki jumped, but he didn't move from his seat on the bench.

Frigga stepped out from behind some bushes, the night air warm as she walked towards her son. "Loki, why are you out here so late."

"Couldn't sleep," He lied with a shrug.

"Why are you wearing your armour?" She asked, sitting on the bench beside him.

He didn't respond as he looked at his helmet, and she sighed.

"Loki, you do not need to hide your secret courtship with Luciana, I already know."

He was caught off guard by this statement and he looked at his mother in shock and curiosity. "How did you find out?"

"I once saw the two of you come back to the castle in the early morning hours. I saw the kiss you shared, and I heard the loving words you spoke to her." She explained, looking at him sadly.

He sighed and looked down at the ground. "She's getting married," He said sadly, swallowing. "Her parents arranged it."

"I know," She said quietly.

"You knew?"

"Yes, your father and I both did. In Cyrus' letter he said he needed Luciana to be away from home while he settled the arrangements. That's why I was so keen on you telling her your feelings; so you wouldn't go through life regretting that you hadn't."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"It was not my place. They were personal family affairs that were not meant to be shared, and Luciana was not to know of it."

Loki looked back down at his helmet and sighed. "I love her."

"Loki," She said sadly. "I'm so sorry."

"I-I was going to ask for her hand tonight," He said, clenching his fist.

Frigga's heart broke for her son, and she looked at him in shock. "You what?"

"I was going to ask for her hand. I've missed her so much, and she's only been gone a week. If I can't handle a week, then I know I'll never be able to handle a lifetime without her, that's why I wanted her to be my wife. But that's impossible now, it's impossible. I can't even see her anymore; her parents don't want us to have contact." He paused with a sad sigh. "Mother, I love her so much, and I'll never see her again."

"Oh, Loki. I'm so sorry."

A tear slid down the queen's cheek as she watched her son, who looked utterly destroyed.

"Life isn't fair, is it?" He asked.

"No," She shook her head. "Sometimes it isn't."

* * *

**Yeah, I'm horrible, aren't I? Hey, being a writer means I have to make some tough decisions involving my plot in order to produce a interesting story.**

**Alright, carry on...and review.**


	22. Chapter Twenty-Two

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"Be on your best behaviour when you meet Ramsay's family, alright?" Cyrus said.

"Yes, father," Luciana said quietly, her horse at the slowest pace imaginable.

He sighed and stopped his steed, waiting for his daughter to catch up. "I know you aren't fond of the idea of getting married, but please try to put on a smile when we get there."

"Yes, father," She repeated, sending him a half-hearted smile.

He sighed again as he kicked his steed to walk. "There is something else troubling you, what is it?"

She shook her head and kicked her horse. "You should know."

With that, Calypso started off running and Cyrus watched in shock and confusion before racing after her.

* * *

"Cyrus, how wonderful it is to see you again," Talon said, walking down the steps of his home.

"Talon," Cyrus greeted with a nod, helping Luciana off her horse.

"And this is the lovely Luciana, I presume?" Talon asked as he stopped in front of the two.

Luciana nodded and managed a smile.

This was her father-in-law to be; Talon Garronson. She could easily see the family resemblance between Talon and his son; in fact, he could even pass as an older version of Ramsay. The fair skin, the blue eyes; identical traits of father and son.

"Is that Cyrus?" A woman's voice asked, and Talon turned around to look at the door.

Standing there was a beautiful woman, clad in a long peach coloured dress, her blonde locks in an elegant up-do.

"Yes, it is. Luciana, this is my wife Celeste; your future mother-in-law." Talon introduced.

Celeste walked in front of Luciana and eyed her coldly, the girl shifting uncomfortably under her hard gaze.

It was clear Celeste wasn't fond of her future daughter-in-law, an unfortunate case for the both of them. One could guess many factors for her dislike for the girl, and they'd all be correct. But one of them stood out the most, and that was jealousy. She had every reason to be jealous, of course; Luciana's family were possibly the most educated and powerful magicians in all of the Nine Realms, her family's abilities seeming dull in contrast to theirs.

When one is jealous of another they imagine the person to be arrogant, proud, and quite snobbish, which is exactly what Celeste thought of the girl who stood before her. She could sense that she didn't want to be here; that she didn't want to marry Ramsay. But what was simply Luciana not wanting to marry to everyone else; it was her family not being good enough for the daughter of Cyrus to her.

"It's nice to meet you," Luciana finally said uncertainly. "Your son is quite brilliant with the magical arts."

"Yes, he is isn't he?" Celeste replied in a monotone, and her eyes scanned the girl's dress. "I'm sure you're quite knowledgeable as well. But one would think that someone so intelligent wouldn't choose such a ghastly colour for a dress."

Luciana's eyes looked down at her blue dress, and she cleared her throat.

"Sorry, I-"

"No need to apologize," The blonde held up her hand. "We all make mistakes."

The other woman didn't reply as she was stared at coldly by the blonde.

Luciana had never missed home so much.

* * *

"So, Luciana," Aceline said, looking at the girl. "You grew up in the forest?"

Dinner had approached quickly after Cyrus left, and Luciana was sentenced to a meal with her future husband and his not so welcoming family.

Talon seemed relatively alright with the girl, as did his youngest sons Varick and Edmar. But his wife, his second eldest son, Magus, and his twin daughters, Aceline and Temira were not so accepting. The minute she had stepped foot in the house the twins, like their mother, criticised her choice of dress and Magus chose to ignore her, but eyed her coldly.

What made this worse is that everyone in the family looked the same; the blue eyes always eerily identical when glaring at her.

"Yes, I did," She responded, making an extra effort to sit up straight and remember every etiquette lesson her mother gave her.

"Not a lot of sun there," Celeste said. "No wonder she's so frightfully pale!"

The table seemed to find this funny and chuckled, including Ramsay.

"Actually, my pale complexion is a heredity trait, coming from both my mother and father." Luciana defended, but immediately regretted it as Magus sent her a look for ruining their fun.

"Pale skin isn't common in Asgard, how did your family get it?" Temira asked, her voice laced with a snobbish tone.

"Well...I'm not quite sure, really."

"So you don't know anything about your family history?" Magus asked.

"No, I just-"

"Pity, we are able to track our roots all the way back to the beginning of time." Aceline said proudly.

Luciana sighed and went back to her meal, decided it best to stay silent.

* * *

Loki ate his dinner slowly, and Thor's eyebrows furrowed at his brother's behaviour.

He had been sulking all day. He was unusually quiet, and when he did speak, his tone was bitter. He wouldn't say what was wrong, and Frigga had said not to push the subject. But Thor, arrogant as he might be, cared for his brother, and wished to know what troubled him so.

"What is the matter, Loki? You haven't been yourself today." Thor asked.

The younger prince narrowed his eyes at his brother. "I'm fine, Thor," Was the curt, cold reply.

That wasn't good enough for Thor, and the older prince picked his brother out of his chair and dragged him out of the dining room.

"Thor! What are you doing?" Loki hissed as they stood in the corridor.

"I am trying to see what is wrong with my brother."

"Nothing is wrong, I'm fine!"

"Loki, I know when my brother is troubled. But I know something that will cheer you up!" Thor exclaimed happily.

Loki eyed his brother suspiciously. "Like what?"

Thor laughed. "You'll see."

The next thing Loki knew, he was in a loud tavern filled with drunken men and women. The smell of alcohol was thick in the room, and apart from the smashing of dishes and yelling of drunken fools, loud singing was heard along with music as the serving-wenches served an endless flow of ale. Everyone here was thoroughly enjoying themselves, everyone except Loki.

"How is this supposed to cheer me up?" He asked bitterly as Thor drank his seventh cup of ale.

"Ale makes everything better, brother. Now drink up!"

Loki eyed the cup of ale that had been placed before him only minutes ago, and he scowled at it.

No amount of alcohol would make him feel any less miserable, no matter what his brother told him. The only thing that would lift his spirits was Luciana; her face, her smile, her laugh. All things he would never see again.

He felt a pang as he remembered this, and he sighed. "I'm going home, Thor," He said standing, only to be roughly pulled back down.

"Nonsense! Brother, I promise you," Thor slurred. "Anything that troubles you shall be drowned out, now drink!"

Loki stared at the ale once more as he picked it up. Sighing, he closed his eyes and brought the goblet up to his lips and drank.

An hour and a half later, he had drunk at least five cups of ale, each sending him further into a drunken stupor.

Unlike Thor had said, the alcohol hadn't soothed Loki's mind, instead it made him angry. It made him angry because he realized how much Luciana's engagement really upset him, and he was seething as he thought about everything that went along with it. Ramsay Talonson is what he hated the most though. The fact that Ramsay would be Luciana's husband and not him filled him with rage, and the alcohol only fueled his fury.

"Brother," Thor slurred finally. "How do you feel now?"

Loki slammed down his empty cup on the table and looked at Thor. "I'm _furious_!"

"Are you?"

"Yes!"

"Why is that, brother?"

"Because I'm not allowed to have any contact with my love; I'm not allowed to marry her; and now she's promised to some stupid, low-life and I have to go on in life bitter about the fact that I'm not him!"

Thor laughed, assuming the alcohol had muddled his brother's mind. "And who is your love, Loki?"

"Luciana!"

This smacked Thor into sobriety, and he gaped at Loki. He watched as his younger brother grabbed another goblet of ale and drank, practically seething as he drank more of the ale, muttering something about a 'Talonson'.

"You love Luciana?" He asked, watching as Loki downed yet another goblet of ale.

"Yes."

"And you want to marry her?"

"Haven't I made myself clear, Thor? Of course I want to damn well marry her! I was courting her all through that month she was at the palace! And just when I want to marry her, her parents decide they're going to marry her off to Ramsay Talonson! What kind of name is 'Ramsay' anyway? And you know what else? Her parents are forbidding us from ever seeing each other again! Something about me being a bad influence or that I've changed her!"

By now Loki was shouting his speech, and Thor watched in astonishment.

"Now she's never going to be my wife, and I'm going to die alone because I'll never be happy without her. This is your fault too! All the while she was at the palace you were interrupting us and dragging me off somewhere, so I didn't get to enough spend time with her. If I had, then she'd be getting married to me, not to that _Ramsay._"

"Brother, you spent nearly-"

"Don't interrupt me, Thor!" Loki snapped loudly. "How am I ever going to be happy again? I'll never be happy knowing that damned son of Talon has _my _darling heart! I swear, if I ever see him I'll-"

"Brother, calm yourself!" Thor exclaimed, taking the goblet of ale away from his brother.

Loki's fists were clenched and he gritted his teeth, his breaths coming out in deep, angry pants as he glared at his elder brother.

"It is clear you love her very much," Thor explained. "But the whole tavern does not need to know about your hatred towards her husband-to-be."

"Look who's telling who to be quiet!" Loki exclaimed. "I remember the last time we were here; you yelled every curse word imaginable at the top of your lungs when you were arguing with that man. If you can do that without be told to quiet down, I can certainly express my hatred towards whomever I please, as loud as I want to!"

Thor sighed and rubbed his face, deciding not to argue with the younger prince. He watched as he downed more cups of ale, becoming more intoxicated by the second.

"I just..." Loki finally slurred, his eyes drooping as sadness laced his voice. "I wanted to be the one to marry her."

"I know, Loki."

"And now I can't even see her anymore. It's just...It's just hard." Loki sighed and stood up, stumbling as he did so. "I'll be going home now."

Thor sighed and stood up as well, following the stumbling Loki out of the loud tavern.

* * *

**Wow, you know what? I'm proud to say that this has become my longest and most popular story! Review wise anyway, Hardest of Hearts is still in the lead for favourites, follows, and views. But hey, I recently got a few reviews for Hardest of Hearts, so maybe it'll get the full title of being my most popular story!  
**

**Well whatever happens, I'm so thankful for all of your support! It really means a lot to me and I hope you continue to make me smile and more thankful for the world every single day! You guys make me feel so great because I know I'm not the best writer out there yet I still have a great support system from people I don't even know, and I wouldn't trade that for anything! I seriously love you guys so much!  
**

**PS. I also love how you all hate me for the last chapter! It makes me feel loved! Yeah, on top of evil, I'm strange.  
**


	23. Chapter Twenty-Three

**Hey guys, sorry for the boring update. It's just that I've been playing around with different story plots for other stories and I'm trying to get them organized and outlined before I even attempt to write the first chapters. Plus, I've got assignments that I _have_ to get done, so I've been pretty busy.**

**Don't worry though, I've already written another chapter for this, but it still needs to be edited, so I won't post it for two or three days.**

**Anyways, carry on!**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story. (I also own this story and any original plot line, so...DON'T STEAL IT...What? It's good to let people know that if they steal my stories, there _will_ be consequences)  
**

* * *

Luciana sat in the guest room of Talon's home, wanting nothing more than to leave.

As she sat on the edge of the bed, she heard a knocking on the door.

"Come in," She said, looking towards it.

Ramsay entered the room and closed the door behind him.

"Good evening," He said. "I hope the room is to your liking?"

"Oh, yes," She said. "Thank you, Ramsay."

He nodded and put his hands together in front of him. "Tomorrow my sisters and my mother are going to a friend's garden to collect flowers for the wedding; I do hope you will join them."

She sighed as she looked at him. "They aren't exactly fond of me."

"What makes you say that?"

"Ramsay, I've only been here for a couple of hours and they've already insulted my complexion and my dress."

"They're just being honest. It's just that your dress is blue, and blue isn't a favourite colour here. I'll admit I'm not that fond of it myself"

"I happen to like blue very much," She said, pulling her silk robe tighter around her. "Ramsay, I respect your family's honesty, but I'm not fond of being insulted. Especially by the people I'll be living with soon."

He went over to her and sat beside her. "I'll talk to them about it; I'll admit that sometimes they aren't the most polite. But it will take some time for them to change, so could you possibly work on being less sensitive?"

She wanted to slap him right then and there. Though his tone was polite and caring, the words that came out of his mouth were ignorant and insensitive. She wasn't being sensitive, though it was one of her defining traits, she simply didn't care for the insults that were hurled at her during dinner. She was appalled by what Ramsay had asked of her, but she would have to learn to obey him as his wife from now on.

"Alright," She said. "I'll try."

"Thank you," He said and he leaned over and kissed her cheek.

His kiss was so different than Loki's; his lips were warm and the gesture seemed empty. She couldn't help but frown slightly, remembering that she'd never feel Loki's touch again, and she fought back tears desperately.

"It's time for bed, goodnight Luciana," He said standing up.

"Goodnight, Ramsay." She said, and he left the room.

How she wished she could stand up to her future family, but her father told her to be on her best behaviour, so she would be. Quite frankly, anyways, she didn't have anything to fight for anymore; she'd never see Loki again. Tears fell from her eyes now, and she let out an exasperated sigh as she furiously wiped away at them. She never thought she'd cry over a man; she'd always imagined herself stronger than that. But here she was crying for a man, crying for what was unfair, crying for Loki.

She slid under the covers of the bed, continuing to wipe away every tear that fell from her face.

Viveca once told her that Loki had changed her, and maybe, in a small way, he had. He made her emotional, vulnerable, and open to heartbreak. It wasn't his fault she was feeling this way though, it was hers. It was her fault she didn't fight for her freedom harder, it was her fault she didn't run away when she had the chance. This was a new side of her that she had never seen before; a side that was hopelessly in love with the God of Mischief.

* * *

The next morning Luciana didn't want to leave the bed, but her sister-in-laws to be had made sure she wasn't comfortable, and dragged her out of it.

They had taken the liberty of dressing her as well, criticising every dress she owned except for, of course, the purple one that had once belonged to Viveca. The twins noticed her discomfort with the dress, but saw it as another opportunity to make her miserable, and they forced her to wear it. She felt like some sort of doll as the girls brushed her hair, deliberately tugging harshly on strands of her hair.

They were quick to usher her out of the house, making her skip breakfast, and she was shocked by how fast they had arrived at the garden.

"Now, for the wedding we should have lavender, irises, and tulips." Celeste said, walking with her daughter around the flowers.

"Wonderful idea, that's splendid!" They chirped in agreement.

"What about lilies, white roses, and baby's breath?" Luciana asked.

The three women laughed.

"Those are dreadful for a wedding!"

"They aren't much to look at either."

"Why would you even consider those types of things?"

Luciana sighed. "Lavender is nice too,"

"On second thought, no it isn't," Temira said quickly. "We should switch out lavender for violets."

"Yes, that's much better!" Aceline agreed.

Luciana sighed once more and followed the women as they went through the garden, chattering about the colours for the wedding, which they had decided would be purple and brown. She nearly laughed at this, and they thought she had a warped sense of colour. But brown was Ramsay's favourite colour, and they were determined to make purple hers.

She had to bite her lip to keep from snapping at her future sister-in-laws, who had began to whisper and giggle about her, sending scornful glances her way. Luciana heard her father's voice in her head, telling her to be on her best behaviour, and she would be. But that didn't stop her from wanting to do nothing more than to hide in hole in the ground, and never come out until she was too old to wed.

Aceline and Temira sent her another scornful look and Luciana heard the word 'pathetic.'

That was it, she couldn't take it. She didn't care what her father said. "I _can_ hear you, you know!" She snapped loudly, and the three woman turned around.

"What was that?" Celeste asked, raising her eyebrow at the girl.

"Forgive me, Celeste," Luciana said, bowing her head at the woman halfheartedly. "But your family have been insulting me from the moment I got here and quite frankly I'm upset by it. I've done nothing wrong to deserve this sort of treatment and I'd like it to end, please. I know you don't like me and I've come to understand that, but it's not fair that your daughters can call me pathetic right in your earshot and you don't do anything about it. It's not very ladylike."

If Luciana could take back the last sentence, she would. By every power in the Nine Realms, she would.

Celeste's face twisted into anger, and Luciana expected the woman to scream and shout at her. To her surprise, Celeste took a deep breath and the anger slowly left her, but a frown was permanent on her face."I don't think you should be teaching my family manners, _Luciana_," She said coldly. "After all, it isn't ladylike at all for a woman to not know how to control her temper. _You_ should know better."

Aceline and Temira snickered and turned away from Luciana as their mother began walking through the garden. Luciana may be different from Viveca, but she was still her sister; they shared the same temper. She crossed her arms angrily as she walked after them, fuming.

* * *

Loki awoke that morning feeling as if he'd been to hell and back; he had a splitting headache, felt nauseous, and he was sure he heard himself hiss at the light that streamed through his window. He tiredly sat up in his bed and rubbed his eyes, running a hand through his hair afterwards.

"Ah, brother!" Someone said from the floor loudly, and he jumped. "You are awake!"

He looked at the floor beside his bed and saw Thor laying there, a grin on his face.

"Thor," He asked. "What are you doing in my room?"

"You passed out on our way home, so I had to carry you."

"Alright, but why are you on my floor?"

"I fell and I didn't want to get up."

Loki pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. "What happened last night?"

"You don't remember? You had at least twelve cups of ale last night; it was a sight to see!"

"Well that explains quite a bit."

Loki laid back down in his bed and put the pillow over his head.

Thor watched him and sighed. "Do you remember what you told me?"

"No, what did I tell you?"

"That you were courting Luciana."

The younger prince shot out of his bed and towered over his brother. "How did you find out?" He asked, seeming quite angry.

"You told me!" Thor defended, sitting up. "I knew you had an attraction towards her, but I never thought you'd court her."

"This is why I don't like going to taverns!" Loki exclaimed, furious with himself.

"You needed it, brother! You let out quite a bit of steam, you are very bitter about her marriage."

"What didn't I tell you?"

Thor thought for a moment. "You never got to finish your threat towards Ramsay Talonson."

Loki tensed at the name. "I don't want to talk about _him_."

Thor chuckled. "Loki, if you are that passionate about Luciana, then why don't you just ask for her hand?"

"Her parents have forbid us to be in contact."

"Then use that silver tongue of yours and make them think otherwise! They don't even have to know you courted her! Just try and make them change their opinion of you before she is married, then perhaps they will reconsider."

Loki looked at his older brother, in shock by the surprisingly good plan. "What if I get turned away?" He asked.

"You are the son of Odin!" Thor exclaimed. "They can't just turn you away! Now go, Loki, get yourself your wife!"

Loki looked at his brother hesitantly, unsure whether or not his plan would work.

"Alright," He finally said after what seemed like hours of an inner debate. "I'll go."

* * *

**Please review!**


	24. Chapter Twenty-Four

**Disclaimer: All character's involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"Unbelievable!" Cyrus exclaimed, pacing to and fro in the front room.

"Dear, it's alright," Astrid said, watching her husband.

"No it is not! Ronan and Harcourt have gone off right when I have tasks for them! This is exactly like them to be so irresponsible!"

"They said they'll be back in the spring."

"Yes, the spring! We're just entering autumn, and we still have a full winter to go before spring!"

"Well, Viveca can help you with the tasks."

"It's not enough," Cyrus said, looking at his wife. "I need someone else as well, these things can't be gathered without at least two people, and I'm too old to help Viveca myself. I need-"

He was cut off by a knocking at the door and he stared at it. "Who could that be?"

Astrid walked towards the door and opened it, slight taken aback by who was there.

"Loki?" She asked, staring at the prince clad in royal Asgardian armour. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm so sorry to disturb you, Lady Astrid," Loki said, politely. "May I come in?"

"Of course," She said, gesturing him to come inside.

"Who's at the...What is _he_ doing here?" Viveca asked coldly as she stepped into the room.

"I was just about to ask that. Loki?" Cyrus said.

"If I may, Lord Cyrus," Loki said. "You are the finest sorcerer in all of Asgard, there is no doubt. Your knowledge of the magic arts exceeds even that of my father. There is no one else in the nine realms that are more experienced, or more powerful than you. I've only ever dreamed of knowing as much as you do, and never would I have thought I would have any opportunity to. And that is why I've travelled miles to come to you, to ask, no, to beg, for an apprenticeship."

Viveca's jaw dropped to the floor, and her head nearly exploded.

"An apprenticeship?" Cyrus asked, surprised.

"Yes, it would be a great honour sir." Loki explained.

"Well..." Cyrus trailed off. "I do need someone's help..." He pondered over the prince's request, pacing once more. "Well," He said, finally making a decision. "Alright, Loki. You may be my apprentice until Ronan and Harcourt return in the spring. Do we have an agreement?"

Loki nodded and smiled. "Yes, sir. Thank you, sir."

* * *

"This is the boy's room," Astrid said, leading Loki through the door. "You'll be staying here."

It was a stone-walled room with dark wood flooring, a rich blue carpet on it. There were two windows at the back of the room beside two wooden doors, which Loki's guessed were the wash chambers. On both walls, there were two beds with dark wood frames, covered by blue blankets.

Astrid walked over to a bed and gestured to it. "This is yours. This room is usually shared with the other boys, but since they aren't here you'll have the room to yourself."

Loki nodded and walked over to the bed.

"Do you have your belongings?" She asked.

With a wave of his hand, a golden trunk appeared at the foot of the bed.

"Impressive," She said, looking at it. "But you should know we refrain from using magic outside lesson hours unless Cyrus says otherwise."

"Of course," He said. "Is there anything else I should know?"

She smiled at the prince. "Much. First, curfew is at nine o'clock sharp, no exceptions, and you must be awake by six. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are served at seven, noon, and six, but I expect you to be at the table ten minutes early. I also expect you to take care of your own horse, and have your laundry in the hamper by the end of the week. The girls quarters of the house if off limits, as are the private quarters. You may visit Cyrus' study, but only if he is there."

He nodded as she continued.

"Always ask Cyrus permission when you wish to take a book out of the library, and make sure to write what book you took, when you took it, and when it was returned. Don't wander off into the forest unless asked, and always leave a note when you do leave. I do not tolerate alcohol, so there will be no tavern visits. Do not damage anything that doesn't belong to you. Don't bring strangers here without permission. And last, but not least, do not _ever_ go into the forbidden room in the cellar. Alright?"

"Yes."

"Good! Well, I'll let you get settled in. Remember now, be at the table ten minutes early."

"I will, thank you."

She smiled at him. "Your very welcome."

With that she left the room, flashing him a smile before she closed the door behind her. His eyebrows furrowed at this.

Luciana had said that her parents thought he was a bad influence, but they seemed pleased that he was here. Loki, still slightly hung over from last night's tavern trip, imagined that his greeting at Cyrus' home would be cold, but it was exactly the opposite, apart from Viveca of course.

He brushed it off as the family simply being civil to the prince of Asgard, and he looked out the window at the trees.

* * *

"Ah, good," Astrid said happily as Loki entered the dining room. "You're here."

"Yes," He said, smiling at her as he sat down. "Your home is very lovely, Lady Astrid, it's quite welcoming."

"Why, thank you, Loki," She said. "And please, don't bother with the 'Lord and 'Lady' titles, the other apprentices don't."

Viveca, who was already in her place, glared at the prince, and he only smirked in response.

Cyrus walked in the room and smiled at the three occupants of the table. "Good everyone's here, we can eat."

Astrid nodded, and with a snap of her finger the plates in front of them filled with food and their goblets filled with water. "Please excuse the lack of meat," She said sitting down. "Ronan and Harcourt are our usually suppliers of that-"

"And they're not here." Cyrus muttered bitterly.

"So I didn't have any to prepare." She finished.

"It's quite alright," Loki assured her, and he took a bite of his meal. "If you don't mind my asking, sir, how many apprentices do you usually take?"

"Eight. Four girls, and four boys. But I've never had that number all at once."

"But it could still happen," Astrid smiled. "First Ramsay, now Loki. It seems these days people are more interested in the magical arts."

Loki stiffened at Ramsay's name, and hid his frown. "Who's Ramsay?" He asked, already knowing the answer.

"My father's apprentice, and Luciana's husband to be," Viveca said, making sure to rub it in Loki's face. "He's brilliant, absolutely brilliant. He and Luciana make a perfect match, I can already see my future nieces and nephews; Ramsay's blonde hair and blue eyes, but Luciana's pale skin. They'll be absolute joys."

Loki had to restrain himself from lunging at her. She knew how much hearing that would upset him, and was obviously trying to get a reaction out of him. But he wouldn't give her that satisfaction, so he only shot her a look before grabbing his goblet and raising it to his lips.

"Yes, they will won't they?" Astrid said, smiling as she thought about her future grandchildren.

"Yes, Viveca, it was a wonderful idea to suggest to us that Ramsay marry Luciana. It's all working out splendidly." Cyrus said.

Loki choked on his water at this and began to cough like mad.

Viveca was behind the marriage? She was the reason Luciana was promised to another man? It all fell into place; Astrid and Cyrus being friendly to him, even though it was claimed they wanted no contact with him; the fact Luciana was to get married before Viveca; it was all because of her. Loki was livid, absolutely livid. All he thought about as he coughed was what he was going to say, and quite frankly how loud he was going to scream it, when he confronted the eldest daughter of Cyrus.

"My goodness, Loki! Are you alright?" Astrid asked worriedly as the prince's coughing died down.

"Yes," He said between coughs, and he wiped his mouth with a napkin. "It just went down the wrong way.

Astrid nodded and went back to discussing something with Cyrus, unaware of the glares Loki and Viveca sent each other from across the table.

* * *

Viveca walked down the hall towards her chambers, a book clasped in her hands.

Suddenly, she was grabbed from behind and whirled around to face a furious Loki.

"_You _had your parents marry off Luciana?" He asked, seething with anger.

"Of course I did," She admitted casually. "I had to make sure she never married you."

"Why would you do something like that?"

"Because I detest you."

"I already know that! I meant, why would you set your sister up to marry someone she doesn't love? What sort of person does that?"

"I did it because I don't trust you with her, I don't trust you with anyone, actually," She explained, unfazed by the fact he towered over her. "I can tell you're a childish, envious, cruel man, who thinks just because he's a royal he gets everything his heart desires. Well, you won't get Luciana, no matter how hard you try to convince my parents. She'll never marry you."

"She can do as she pleases," He nearly shouted. "I'm not going to force her into marriage like you did, because unlike some, I actually care about her!"

"How dare you accuse me of being heartless!"

"I'm not accusing you, I'm stating a fact!"

Viveca frowned at him. "You'll never marry my sister," She sneered. "I'll never let her be married to the likes of you."

He frowned at her as she continued. "I watched you attempt to woo my sister at the castle, I heard to confess your love for her to your mother as well. Remember that day, when my mother got angry at the both for being alone together for five hours? Well, she wouldn't have if I hadn't seen the two of you and planted worries into her mind. I've been trying to get rid of you for so long now, yet you keep coming back."

"You're just angry about the trick I pulled on you."

"Oh no, Loki," She said harshly. "I'm angry about much more than that." She lowered her voice to a whisper. "If you try anything with my sister, I _will_ destroy you. I have the power and I have the motive, you won't be able to stop me."

"I _can_ have you arrested for uttering threats against a royal."

"I know you can, but you won't. Luciana may be intelligent, but she will throw all that away for her family. If you lock me up, she'll never forgive you. You're stuck, Loki, you can't do anything to get what you want. The Cyrus clan always wins, and I intend to keep it that way. You can forget all about that courtship you had with her, that's nothing but a memory."

"How did you know about that?" Loki asked in shock, but he was still furious.

"I have my ways. It was disgusting really, how in love you seemed. Oh well though, all good things must come to an end, at least, for you they must."

With that, she walked away from Loki and into her chambers, smirking at him wickedly as she closed the door.

Loki scowled at the door, his fists clenched.

* * *

**Question. How many of you want Thor's hammer to smash Viveca in the head?**

**Please review.**


	25. Chapter Twenty-Five

**Wow, this has got over 50 reviews! You guys seriously rock!**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"You want me to have how many?" Luciana asked in shock and slight horror.

"Six," Celeste replied, bringing a piece of light purple fabric to her skin. "This colour should go well with your complexion."

The next day after the trip to the garden, Celeste had taken her to a tailor it the city to prepare her wedding dress. Everything was going terribly fast for Luciana, and it didn't help that her future mother-in-law decided to bring up her future grandchildren, whom she wanted at an alarming number.

"Six? You want me to have six children?" The girl asked, trying to process the thought.

"Five at the least," The woman replied. "Our family takes pride in a large amount of offspring."

"But six?"

"Yes, and I already have the names for them. For the girls: Belva, Irvette, and Wisteria. And for the boys: Valdemar, Jarek, and Osric."

Luciana's jaw nearly dropped, but she maintained her posture. Those, of course, were fine names, but that wasn't the problem. The problem was that she didn't even get a say in naming her future children, she didn't even get to give her opinion on what she thought of the names, and she would be their mother!

"I'm-I'm not sure if I can handle six children," She said, biting her lip.

"Don't you like children?" Celeste asked, raising her eyebrow.

"I do! It's just that I've never imagined myself have _six_."

"Well, how many did you imagine yourself having?"

"One or two, perhaps."

"Just that?"

"Well, yes. I don't want any of my children to feel as if they're not loved, or don't get enough attention."

Celeste pursed her lips. "I doubt that will happen with Ramsay as their father. If one parent is neglectful, the other will make up for it. Ramsay's perfectly prepared to take on that role."

It took Luciana everything she had not to defend herself. She promised her father she'd be on her best behaviour, and that's what she intended to do.

No matter how many times she was insulted.

* * *

"Alright, today I need you to both to go out and gather me every piece of sun root you can find," Cyrus said, handing Viveca and Loki baskets. "It'll be autumn soon and we won't be able to find it until next summer."

The two sent each other a quick glare before nodding and leaving the room.

They walked two walked deep into the forest in silence, both bitter and angry towards the other. They remained silent as they dug around for the roots, occasionally tossing one into their baskets.

"I don't understand why you have your heart set on my sister," Viveca said bitterly after awhile. "Why couldn't you have picked someone else?"

"Because I love her!" He quickly defended, his back to her as she dug out another root. "What I don't understand is why you hate that so much!"

"I hate it because she could do so much better than you," She exclaimed, and he rolled his eyes.

"That's not very straightforward," He said.

"That doesn't matter," She replied. "The point is that I've told you time and time again that I don't want you near my sister, yet every time you ignore me and go near her anyway! It just shows how childish, self-centered, egotistical, and desperate you are!" She stamped her foot on the ground like a child and glared at his back.

"I'm sorry were you describing me?" He asked sarcastically, turning to look at her. "Because everything in that sentence was a perfect description of you."

"How dare you?" She said, offended. "I'm nothing like that!"

"Yes, you are. And more! You're dramatic, you're arrogant, you walk around like all of the Nine Realms owe you something," He listed them off with his fingers and she continued to glare at him. "You don't care about anyone's feelings but your own, you lie, and you hate someone as soon as they do even one thing wrong! You need an attitude adjustment more than anyone!"

He grabbed his now full basket of roots and stood up, glaring at her before walking back towards the house.

* * *

Loki knocked on the door to Cyrus' study, a tray of tea in his hands.

He knew he couldn't just ask Luciana's parents for her hand; they were too set on Ramsay, who they had praised highly all through dinner that night. He had a plan though; he had to make sure more fond of him than Ramsay, by doing whatever it took, including delivering Cyrus his tea. Only when they were fond enough of him would he ask, or if it came to it, beg, for their youngest daughter's hand.

He knew, unfortunately, that this wasn't a full proof plan. They could say no, or Viveca could very well get in the way. But it was, surprisingly, the only plan he had at the moment.

"Come in," Cyrus called, and the door opened on its own.

"Good evening, sir," He said, smiling as he placed the tray on the desk. "Astrid had me bring up your tea." Loki inwardly chuckled at this. A prince bringing a sorcerer tea? How ironic, yet necessary.

"Ah," Cyrus said, putting down a letter. "Thank you, Loki."

"You're welcome, sir," He said, bowing his head and placing his hands in front of him. His eyes travelled down to the letter. "A letter from Luciana?"

"No, Garnock, Astrid's father."

"Garnock? From what I've read I gathered he had died."

"No."

"Oh, then I presume he'll be at the wedding?"

"Unfortunately, yes."

"Unfortunately?"

Cyrus sighed and waved his hand, closing the open door behind Loki who looked behind him.

"I take it you aren't fond of Garnock?" He asked as he turned back, hoping to keep the conversation going.

"It's not that I'm not fond of him, it's just that he's not entirely...sane." Cyrus explained.

"He isn't? I've understood that he was a very accomplished sorcerer." Loki asked, surprised.

"Yes, he _was. _But he's always been an eccentric, old coot who likes to wander off and disrupt the equilibrium of magic more than it already is." Cyrus replied, sighing as he poured himself some tea.

"Garnock the Great an eccentric? That's a surprise." Loki said.

"Well, you'll see what I mean next week, he'll be coming. I was wondering if you could keep an eye on him while Astrid, Viveca, and I go to see Talon and work out wedding arrangements for Luciana. I'd take him with us, but I'm afraid what he might do in new territory."

Loki hid his frown at this. "Yes, of course."

"Perfect, thank you so very much," Cyrus said. "Now if you excuse me, I have quite a bit of work to get done."

"Of course, good night, sir."

* * *

**Sorry it's short, but it's necessary for the story and I wrote the important parts but just didn't know how to keep this chapter going.**

**Please review, thank you!**


	26. Chapter Twenty-Six

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"Don't rush me, Cyrus; I'm _not_ getting any younger!" A man's voice exclaimed in the front room.

Loki's eyebrows furrowed and he looked towards the room.

"Sorry, Garnock," He heard Cyrus apologize.

The two men soon walked into the sitting room where Loki sat and Garnock looked at him. "So this is the young lad will be marrying my little Lucy, eh?" He walked over to Loki and poked him on the shoulder. "Not bad, not bad, a bit thin, but Astrid's cooking should fix that." He laughed at this and ruffled Loki's hair, the prince being taken aback by this.

Garnock was a grey-haired man with somewhat crazed, brown eyes. He wore a dusty, brown robe and had an array of small pouches on his belt, one that seemed to emit a foul odour. He didn't seem quite aware of his surroundings, yet eyed everything closely as if looking at an unseen force.

Cyrus sighed. "Actually, Garnock, that is Prince Loki, my apprentice. Luciana will be marrying my other apprentice, Ramsay."

"Ramsay?" Garnock asked. "What in the Nine Realms is a 'Ramsay'?"

Cyrus sighed again and looked at Loki, who was fixing his hair. "Thank you for watching him."

"Of course," He said, watching as Garnock got on his knees and looked under the couch, mumbling something about a 'forest pixie'.

"Oh and," Cyrus lowered his voice to a whisper. "I apologize in advance for any emotional or physical damage he may cause you."

"What?" Loki asked, but Cyrus left the sitting room before he could respond.

Loki listened as he heard the front door close and he stared in its direction for a long while.

"You," Garnock said, suddenly standing in front of him and shoving something in his face. "Chew this!"

Loki eyed the brown, moldy looking object. "Why?"

"I want to see if it's poisonous," Garnock replied as if it were obvious.

"I'm not chewing that-that, what is that, anyway?"

"I'm not quite sure," Garnock said, rolling the object between his fingers. "I found it stuck to the bottom of my shoe." He then shrugged and popped it into his mouth, and Loki gagged at the sight.

He watched as the man chewed the thing, his face twisting in disgust and he made a sound from the back of his throat. Garnock then looked around the room, picking up a couch pillow and throwing it at the wall with a grunt. He muttered under his breath and carried on inspecting things around the room, Loki watching in astonishment. His eyes followed Garnock as his went to the couch across from him and stood on it, his hand outstretched towards the ceiling as if he were attempting to grab something.

"What are you doing?" Loki finally managed to ask.

Garnock looked at him in shock. "Isn't it obvious? I'm trying to capture this forest pixie! I'm afraid I brought one into the house."

"What's a forest pixie?"

"Oh, they're nasty little things. They bite, they break things, and they have an odd fondness to cranberries."

"What do they look like?"

"They're brown and green, like the trees. They have large, yellow eyes, small wings, long teeth, and are about the size of your palm."

Loki chuckled, knowing full well no such creature existed, but decided to play along. "I've never seen one."

"Well that's because you've never eaten one!" Garnock exclaimed, jumping off the couch.

"Eaten one?"

"Oh yes. They only reveal themselves to those who have tasted their oddly flavoured selves. It's a surprising taste; really, it's much like...chocolate mixed with goat cheese."

"And..." Loki began slowly. "How did you come to taste one?"

"Oh it's a fascinating story," He said, sitting down on the floor. "It was a Monday...or was it a Tuesday? Anyways, I was by a waterfall, and I was trying to taste the wind when one flew straight into my mouth."

"And you ate it?"

"I eat anything that comes into contact with my mouth. Nearly ate my wife once, bless her soul."

Loki looked at the man oddly, his mouth opened slightly. Never had he met someone as insane as the man listening to the floor before him. He shook his head and cleared his throat. "So," He asked, hoping to get a relatively normal conversation out of the man. "You're Astrid's father?"

"I am," Garnock responded, inspecting a piece of dust.

"Is she your only child?" Loki asked.

"I think so, then again I thought I had ten toes when I really had twelve."

"Twelve?" Loki asked, his eyebrows furrowing. "You have twelve-"

"By the gods, would you look at that!" Garnock exclaimed, jumping up and running towards a wall and staring at it.

"What?" Loki asked, standing up and walking over to the man.

"What? What do you mean 'what'?" Garnock asked, looking at the prince in astonishment. "It's right there in front of you!" He pointed at the wall.

Loki eyed the wall and saw nothing but the stone, and he looked back at the man. "I don't see anything."

Garnock sighed in exasperation. "Never mind. What's wrong with this generation?" He muttered to himself before sitting down on the couch.

Loki stared at the man.

This was going to be a long day.

* * *

"Alright, Garnock," Loki said, walking into the room with a tray of tea and mushrooms. "I've gotten what you've asked for, now...Garnock?"

He looked around the sitting room; there was no sight of the man.

"Garnock?" He called, placing the tray on the table.

There was no reply and Loki collapsed onto the couch, leaning back on it with his hands on his face.

"Oh gods no." He muttered.

His eyes fell to a piece of bark on the table, with something crudely written on it. He picked it up and read:

_Loki,  
I have gone after the forest pixies to stop them from raising an army to take over Asgard.  
Best regards, _  
_Garnock._

_PS. Please make sure that the mountain imps don't abduct Astrid when she returns._

Loki groaned. "Crazy old coot..." He muttered and he quickly ran from the house and into the forest.

"Garnock? Garnock? Garnock, where are you?" He yelled as he ran deeper into the woods, looking about for any sight of the man. There was no response and he stopped running, panting heavily.

Unbelievable. Cyrus had given him a task, and he failed it in four hours.

He was just about to go back to the house when he heard it: the sounds of a man's voice. He stopped in his tracks, listening intently. Yes, there it was the sound of Garnock's voice coming from deeper into the woods.

"Back, back, you foul beasts! You are not match for Garnock the Great!" Loki heard Garnock yell, and he raced off in his direction.

He found the old man in a small clearing, waving about a stick wildly about in the air.

"Back, back, I say! You have no business in Asgard!" He yelled, slashing at the air.

Loki sighed. "Garnock," He said calmly, and the man looked at him.

"Ah, laddie! Are you just going to stand there and let an old man defeat an army of pixies himself?" He shouted.

Loki walked up to the man and attempted to grab his arm.

"By gods!" Garnock cried, dropping his stick. "That's the largest forest pixie I've ever seen!" He was staring at a bunch of trees, his eyes wide and his jaw dropped. "It must be the queen! Quickly, boy, run!"

"What?" Loki only had time to say before Garnock was dragging him deeper into the forest at top speed.

"They're after us!" The crazed man said, looking back at the prince. "Don't dilly dally, run!" As he continued to run with Loki in tow, he grabbed two sticks and handed one to him. "And use this to defend yourself."

Loki threw the stick down and stopped in his tracks, staring at the man. "No. Garnock, there is nothing chasing us."

"Says the man who has never tasted a forest pixies skin!"

"There are no such things as forest pixies, Garnock. Now, we are going to go back to the house and-"

"Look out, laddie!" Garnock cried.

Loki's eyebrows furrowed, and he opened his mouth to speak. But before he could say anything, he was tackled by Garnock and he lost his footing, falling into a cavern. He grunted as he fell, his clothes catching on vines and rocks, making his fall bumpy until he finally landed hard on rock and groaned.

"Hang on there, laddie!" Garnock yelled, kneeling at the top of the opening. "I'll save you!"

Loki opened his eyes and looked up in time to see Garnock falling towards him with his arms extended. The old man landed on Loki, who groaned in pain at the impact.

"You've got to be joking..." He said painfully, pushing Garnock off of him.

"Ha ha!" Garnock exclaimed, standing up. "I have saved us from those terrible beasts!"

"Well, that's great," Loki said sarcastically, painfully sitting up. He had lost all patience with this man, related to Luciana or not. "Now, how are you going to get us out of this cavern?"

"Oh, I won't," Garnock said. "But the wildflower sprites will!"

Loki groaned and laid back down on the stone. "And what are the wildflower sprites, exactly?"

"They're sprites of all different colours. They're incredibly friendly, but almost impossible to see, for they are only about this big," Garnock made a small space with his fingers. "They save those who are pure of heart from the utter grips of defeat. And since we are pure of heart, they will come."

"So what do we do until they come?"

Garnock sat down on the ground and stared at the opening of the cavern. "We wait."

* * *

**Okay, so I know this seems completely out of tune with the story plot, but Garnock plays a very important role in this, I just have yet to write it down.  
So I thought that this would be a good, and incredibly amusing, way to introduce him.**

**Anyways, please review!**

**PS. I want, from you my dear readers, at least four reviews before I post the next chapter. I'm serious. Really I'm not joking. Unless I get at least four reviews for this chapter, I WILL NOT UPDATE. Kay, love you guys! You rock! XOXO**


	27. Chapter Twenty-Seven

**This author's note is important, so I ask kindly of you to read it.**

**I know the last chapter was out of tune for the story plot, and I'm incredibly sorry that I've probably really confused you guys. However, it is the introduction for a very significant part of the story that will become clear very soon.  
**

**Also, about how I said I would only update if I got four reviews? Yeah sorry about that. Some of you have complained about that and I realize I probably shouldn't have done it. I meant it as a joke, but when I got a complaint and reread it I realized it wouldn't appear that way to you guys since none of you actually know who I am and how I talk and act. That's the problem with typing; you can say something but it'll come out as something else. So I apologize for any offense or annoyance I may have caused, it was unintentional.  
**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"How could you lie to me like that, Viveca?" Luciana shouted at her sister.

"Because I never wanted you to see him again!" Viveca yelled back.

When the Cyrus clan arrived to see Luciana at Talon's home, Astrid had mentioned Loki becoming Cyrus' apprentice, much to Luciana's anger. She soon figured out that her parents had no problem with Loki, and that Viveca had made the whole thing up to keep them apart. Luciana was livid that her sister had lied to her, and had confronted her about it in the garden of Talon's home.

"Well, how long did you think it was going to be before I found out?" Luciana asked, her arms crossed.

"Until you were married, and could no longer do anything about it," Viveca said. "But I didn't expect Loki to come see father, and I certainly didn't expect you to fall for him. I thought you were more intelligent than that."

Luciana uncrossed her arms and clenched her fists at her sides. "I'm going to tell mother and father."

Viveca laughed. "Really? You're honestly going to go to mother and father about this? You're no child, Luciana, yet you're beginning to act like one."

"I'm not acting like a child," Luciana fumed. "I'm simply upset that my own sister chose to lie and ruin my happiness, and I think that mother and father should know about that."

"See? This is exactly why I didn't want you around Loki, his childishness has rubbed off on you."

"Would you stop with the childish subject? Loki's not childish, I'm not childish, but I'm not sure I can say the same thing about you."

Viveca stopped and went to leave but Luciana grabbed her arm. "We aren't finished," She fumed. "You aren't going to get away with doing that, Viveca, and I'm going to tell mother and father right now."

"Are you?" Viveca asked, taking her arm back. "If you tell mother and father, you'll give away that secret courtship you had with Loki."

"How did you-"

"That doesn't matter," Viveca interrupted. "All that matters is that you'll be in trouble, then you'll really not be allowed to see Loki again. So I suggest you keep this to yourself, and just live with the fact that Loki won't be part of your happy ending."

She turned around and walked away from her younger sister, who fumed as she watched her leave.

* * *

"And then as I was climbing the tree, and orange coloured troll followed me up," Garnock explained. "I asked him how he had turned orange, and he said he didn't know, but wished he wasn't. So, feeling sorry for the old chap, I invited him over for tea and gave him the cure. We are still friends to this very day!"

Loki said nothing as Garnock continued his story, and he leaned against a rock, pinching the bridge of his nose.

It was dark by now, and to no surprise for Loki, no wildflower sprites had come to rescue them. During their time in the cavern, Garnock had been telling Loki various stories about his adventures, most of them including creatures Loki was sure didn't exist. It had occurred to Loki that he would have enjoyed Garnock's stories when he was a child, and probably would have taken part in some of them with Thor. But now, they were nothing but tales that slowly ate away at his patience.

"...And that, my laddie, is how I caught the hobgoblin that stole my shoe!" Garnock exclaimed, seeming proud of himself. "Now it's your turn!"

"My turn?" Loki asked, confused. "My turn to do what?"

"Oh for the love of..." Garnock said, rolling his eyes. "To tell a story! Come now, laddie, I'm five thousand, one hundred sixty-eight, I don't have all day!"

"You're five thousand, one hundred sixty-eight?" Loki asked, astonished the old man could still walk.

"Or so," Garnock said. "Now, get to it!"

Loki thought about it for a moment. "I'm not sure I have any stories to tell."

"Oh, don't give me that! Go on, tell me."

"I don't have anything to tell."

"How about you tell me why you've decided to be an apprentice to Cyrus? Because I know it's not just because he's high and mighty and experienced!"

Loki stared at the man. "What?"

Garnock laughed. "What? You think just because I'm old I can't tell when someone's in love?"

"What makes you think I'm in love?" Loki asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, don't be daft, boy!" Garnock exclaimed. "No prince in his right mind is going to throw away a castle just to be an apprentice to a sorcerer! Only a man in love, or is incredibly stupid, will do that sort of thing."

Loki only continued to stare at him, and watched as he picked up a stone.

"I'm actually surprised a man like you would fall in love with someone like her," Garnock continued. "After all, Viveca is-"

"Viveca? No, no, I don't love Viveca!" Loki quickly protested, cutting the man off.

Garnock looked at him for a long moment, and then his lips curled into a smile. "Oh, I see. It's the other lass, isn't it?"

Loki raised an eyebrow and Garnock let out an exasperated sigh.

"I _mean_," He said. "You're in love with Luciana."

Loki stayed silent, looking down at the ground.

"Ah, so it is her..." Garnock trailed off. He then let out a loud cry and jumped up, and Loki's head snapped up towards him. "Oh this is wonderful news! Now I won't have to put on a fake smile at the wedding!" Garnock cried, and he began to dance around.

"We...we aren't getting married," Loki said somewhat sadly. "At least not with the way things are going. Cyrus and Astrid seem set on Ramsay."

"Hogwash! When I wanted to marry Astrid's mother she was already promised to someone else, but that didn't stop me!"

"What did you do?"

"I stuffed her in a sack and hit her father with a spoon!" Garnock said proudly.

Loki was at a loss for words as he gaped at the lunatic of a man standing before him.

"You know, laddie, sometimes you need to fight for what you want, especially if it's something you truly love," Garnock said, staring at the prince. "Because if you don't, you'll go through life wondering why you didn't, and what could have happened if you did."

Loki's jaw nearly dropped at the sentence, which surprisingly made sense.

"That was...wise." He said, not able to find another word.

"Of course it was wise! I'm Garnock the Great!" He shouted with his arms outstretched, as if in front of an audience.

"And how did Garnock the Great manage to get in this situation?" A man's voice called from the opening of the cavern.

The two looked up, and to Loki's great relief, it was Cyrus.

"Ah, Cyrus!" Garnock exclaimed. "I assume the wildflower sprites told you where to find us, eh?" He chuckled and looked at Loki. "I told you help would come!" He looked up at Cyrus. "I told him help would come!"

"Yes, yes, I'm sure you did, Garnock. Now take this," Cyrus let a rope ladder down. "And come up."

Garnock looked at Loki, who stood up from his place. "I can't climb."

"It's just a ladder; I'll be right behind you." Loki assured, trying to usher the man up the ladder, desperate for escape.

"No, no, no, that won't do," Garnock muttered and he went behind Loki and jumped on his back.

"Wait, what are you doing?" Loki asked, stumbling slightly under the weight of the man.

"Getting a ride! You're a tall fellow, aren't you? Now, climb!" Garnock said, pointing towards the opening.

Loki sighed and climbed the ladder slowly, trying to keep his balance as he held the old man on his back. As he reached the top, Cyrus helped him up and caught him when he stumbled backwards a bit.

"Thank you," Loki said.

"Of course," Cyrus said nodding.

"Alright, Garnock," Loki said turning his head to look at the old man. "You can get off my back now."

"Nonsense! I'm five thousand, one hundred and sixty-eight, I don't have to walk!"

Loki and Cyrus sighed in defeat before treading off towards the house, Garnock telling Cyrus loudly about their day.

* * *

**Oh my god, I just realized how much I want to kill Viveca! Should I? I've got the power to, it would only take the push of a few keys...Hmm, questions...**


	28. Chapter Twenty-Eight

**Wow, a lot of you _really_ want me to kill Viveca. **

**I would say that we do this the democratic way and put it to a vote, but you guys mostly have so...Yeah, I have some serious thinking to do.  
**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"I don't want the wedding in the autumn," Garnock exclaimed, slamming his fists on the table. "I want it in the winter!"

"Father," Astrid said calmly, placing a cup of tea in front of him. "It's already been decided that the wedding is to take place in the autumn."

"If I remember correctly, Luciana's favourite season is the winter!" Garnock said, raising a finger.

"Well, the marriage is to happen as quickly as possible. That's why we decided today that it's happening in the autumn." Astrid explained, sitting down across from him.

"Well, I don't like it!"

"It's not your wedding," Cyrus reminded his father-in-law.

"It's not yours either, yet you make her get married in the autumn!" Garnock retorted.

"Garnock, please, it's already been decided," Cyrus said, exasperated.

"Is there no one in this house that will agree with me?" Garnock asked, his response silent. "Well, alright then." He said, standing up. "Loki!" He yelled loudly and the other two jumped. "Loki, wake up!" He began to walk out of the dining room and up the stairs. "You'll never accomplish anything if you spend the nights sleeping!"

Banging was heard from upstairs, along with Garnock's shouting. A few moments later, Garnock returned to the kitchen proudly dragging a very tired looking Loki along with him. He pushed the half-awake prince into a chair and returned to his, smiling at him.

"Now, Loki, tell my daughter and my son-in-law that a wedding in the autumn is preposterous!" He demanded.

"Why?" Loki asked tiredly.

"Because that's when these two want Luciana to get married!"

This woke Loki up and he looked at the two, trying to mask his horror. "That soon?"

"Yes," Cyrus replied, nodding.

"Ah ha, you see! The prince of Asgard agrees with me!" Garnock said, pointing at the prince. "It's settled now; the wedding is to take place in the winter."

Astrid sighed. "Loki, you can go back to bed."

He stayed silent but nodded, leaving the dining room quickly.

He could hardly contain his anger at this; he hadn't expected Luciana to get married _that _quickly. He knew Viveca had something to do with it; she always had something to do with it. He would have confronted her about it, but he didn't trust himself not to scream at her, so he walked to his room quietly but fuming.

* * *

Over the course of the week, the wedding day drawing closer and closer, Garnock seemed to be trying everything in his power to drive his family to the brink of madness. He would criticize everything in the wedding, and would even sabotage some things; the freshly made invitations suddenly going missing, and Luciana's wedding newly crafted wedding jewellery being scattered in odd places around the house. He would even wander off into the forest, though that wasn't unusual, and bring back a goblin or a troll and allow it to run rampant around the house, distracting the family from the wedding planning.

Of course, he wasn't alone. After the first couple incidents, Loki had started to cause a few of his own, mostly aimed at Viveca. He would sneak into her room at night and conjure up spiders and other insects and creatures to terrify her, and he would change the colour of many of her dresses to make her angry. He was only ever blamed by Viveca for these occurrences, though, as Garnock would always provide a way out for him. Whenever she would run to her parents screaming, Garnock would say he was the one who caused her distress, and have a hearty laugh about it afterwards.

Whether he thought he had actually done these things or if he simply liked to have the attention on him, Loki didn't know. He was only glad he could continue his mischievous ways without being suspected by the family, aside from Viveca who blamed him for everything. These happenings put stress on Cyrus and Astrid, though, and Loki did feel _some_ guilt for that. He would genuinely help the two through their stress and listened to them rant for hours on end. This was beginning to make the two fonder of the prince, but he feared that it wouldn't be enough in time for the wedding.

Loki was pondering over these thoughts in his room when he heard a knocking on the door. "Come in," He said.

The door opened and Garnock stepped in, holding a dusty old sack in his hand. He had a somewhat crazed smile on his face as he waved the sack in the air, and he stared at the prince.

"Yes, Garnock?" Loki asked.

"I'm going out to find a mushroom gremlin. Would you like to come?" Garnock said.

"I don't think so!" Astrid's voice rang from the hall, and Garnock's jaw dropped in horror as if a monster were coming after him. "You're not going anywhere, father," She said firmly, now standing behind the man. "Especially not after what happened last time."

"Quickly, lad!" Garnock yelled, running into the bedroom and hiding under a bed, but his feet still stuck out. "Run and maybe you'll survive!"

"Father," Astrid said tiredly, and she walked over to him. "Come out from under there."

"Absolutely not! I- oh, look a shoe!" Garnock exclaimed. "Oh, and a piece of string! By the gods, I'm rich!"

She sighed and bent down, grabbing his ankles and pulling him.

"No, I will not leave these treasures!" Garnock yelled, clawing at the ground.

"Come on," Astrid said, and Loki watched in amazement as she literally dragged her father away. She pulled Garnock out of the room, and sent Loki a quick smile. "Goodnight, Loki."

With that she shut the door and Loki stared at it for a few moments before climbing into bed.

* * *

Loki was awakened that night by the sound of muttering and the occasional chuckle.

His eyes fluttered open and he tiredly sat up, listening to whoever was in his room. In the darkness he saw a shadowy figure of a man creeping out from under a bed then crawling under the next, something dragging on the floor. He waved his hand and the room filled with light, and he looked at the man under the bed.

"Garnock?" He asked, recognizing the man's robe. "What are you doing?"

"Well, what does it look like I'm doing?" Garnock asked, still under the bed. "I'm getting supplies for my raid on the mushroom gremlin's keep!"

Loki sighed. "Astrid said you weren't allowed to go."

"To hell with what Astrid said! I'm a grown man; I can do what I please."

"Yes, but I don't think it's a good idea to go out looking for this mushroom gremlin when Astrid told you not to."

Garnock only grumbled and came out from under the bed, clutching his sack. "Fine."

"Thank you," Loki said, and he laid back down, wanting to return to his slumber. He waved his hand and the lights in the room went out, leaving Garnock in the darkness.

Garnock didn't have to listen to Loki, whether royalty or not. He was Garnock the Great; he could do what he wanted.

But perhaps the young prince had a point about not going after the mushroom gremlin.

Perhaps Garnock could go after something much, much better.

* * *

**Cliffhanger!**

**Please review, and thank you for your continued support!**


	29. Chapter Twenty-Nine

**I woke up this morning and saw 76 reviews. **

**My reaction: OMG WHAT?! YES! THANK YOU!  
**

**Your reward: This chapter.**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story**

* * *

Luciana sat in Talon's sitting room, clenching her teacup tightly as she listened to Aceline and Temira's whispered gossip about her.

"I bet she's using an enchantment to make herself beautiful," Aceline whispered. "Under that pretty face is probably a toad!"

Temira and Aceline giggled and Luciana bit her tongue to keep from yelling.

"Well, you know what _I_ think," Temira whispered. "I think that she's probably not as smart as she lets on! She probably stole Ramsay's notes while he was there!"

"It wouldn't surprise me. She's probably as daft as a mule, maybe more!"

"Exactly! It's a shame Ramsay has to marry _that. _Here I was hoping my nieces and nephews would at _least_ be decent looking and relatively intelligent."

"Ha! Not with her as a mother! You know what they say, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. And in this case the tree is a stupid, ugly wench."

With that, Luciana clenched her fist so tight that she shattered her teacup in between her hand, and the porcelain flew about the room. Everyone in the room fell silent and looked at her in shock.

"Luciana?" Ramsay asked, looking at his bride-to-be in horror.

"_That_ was my best porcelain!" Celeste hissed.

"You should learn to be more careful!" Magus snapped.

"Yes, control your temper!" Ramsay said.

Luciana darted her head over to him and stood up, walking towards him. "Control my temper? _Control my temper_? I'm _done_ controlling my temper!" She screamed, glaring at him. "From the minute I came here I've been treated like scum, and you're telling me to control my temper? What about your family's attitude? Aren't you going to tell them to control _that_?"

Ramsay stared at her in shock.

"You know, _girls_," She addressed Aceline and Temira, turning to look at them. "You're both so lovely on the outside. But on the inside _you're_ the toads!"

Their jaws dropped.

"Luciana, calm down!" Ramsay exclaimed.

"No! I will not calm down! I've had it up to here with your family Ramsay! I wish that I was never arranged to be married to you because your family is hell! I've had enough of all of this, all of it! I've stayed silent and polite for too long now!"

"You should learn to keep your mouth shut," Celeste said to the girl.

Luciana turned to her. "And you, _Celeste_, should learn how to be a proper being instead of the monster that crawled from the darkest holes of Asgard!"

Celeste's jaw dropped and Luciana scowled.

"Now, if you all excuse me," She said. "I'm going to bed! The faster I get to sleep means I'm that much closer to my life being over!"

Luciana whirled around and stormed out of the sitting room. She ran up the stairs and down the halls, slamming her door shut as she entered her room. She quickly got changed into her nightgown and threw herself onto her bed, fuming. She only made things worse for herself, now they all had a reason to be vile to her. She didn't care though, she just wanted to go home and cry like a child until there were no more tears to shed.

She closed her eyes and waited for sleep to come. After a half hour, she heard scratching on her window. She opened her eyes and raised her head from her pillow, eying the window. The only movement was the branches of the tress moving slowly with the wind, and she laid her head back down and closed her eyes. The scratching began again but she dismissed it, and she rolled over onto her other side as she felt herself drifting off to sleep.

She didn't hear the window creak open, and someone fall into the room with a thud. The person got up off the floor, holding something in their hand. They walked over the bed slowly and quietly, as not to wake Luciana. They raised what they held over her and quickly brought it down on her head, waking her up.

She was confused as she felt someone stuff her into something, and it was only when she realized that she was being kidnapped she started to scream.

She screamed and struggling in whatever held her, and she strained her neck to see whoever had abducted her, but she was surrounded by darkness. Whoever captured her slung her over their shoulder as they climbed out the window and down the tree, walking quickly as they left the home.

She continued to struggle as her captor walked down the road, humming a merry tune.

"Let me go!" Luciana cried. "You have no right to do this!

Her captor continued to hum, seeming unaware of her struggling. Desperate, she blindly pounded her fists everywhere around her, screaming and pleading for help as her abductor continued to trudge on with her in tow.

"Please, let me go! I haven't done anything!" She exclaimed, panting from her struggles.

There was no response as she was continued to be held captive, and she let out a sound of distress.

There was no way she was getting out of this.

* * *

Loki walked towards the kitchen of the house, looking very crestfallen.

He had been there for weeks and no matter how hard he tried, whether using his silver tongue or not, he could get the family's hearts off of Ramsay. They were too set on the son of Talon, which both infuriated and saddened him. He'd lost hope on getting Luciana out of the arranged marriage, he couldn't think of anything else he could do. Of course he could demand for the arrangement to be broken, by Cyrus didn't have to obey him if he didn't want to; he was only the prince, not the Allfather.

He was going to lie to them and tell them that the palace needed him home, when really he just couldn't stand to have his heartbreak rubbed in his face any longer. He realized that Viveca had won; she was getting exactly what she wanted. How happy she'd be when she found out, how proud her smirk would be when she stared at him as he left.

Loki Odinson, God of Mischief, and Prince of Asgard, had lost. The Lie-Smith had lost to the sorceress.

The sorceress, who somehow was able to avoid Loki's sly, cunning ways, had been able to send his never-failing silver tongue and craftiness to the grave.

"Loki, have you seen my father? I can't find him anywhere." Astrid asked as he entered the kitchen.

"Not since last night, no." Loki replied, shaking his head.

"Oh," She said worriedly. "This is just like him! Wandering off and doing Valhalla knows what!"

"Shall we look for him?"

"We'll wait another hour then we'll search. Hopefully he hasn't gotten himself into too much trouble."

Loki nodded in agreement as Viveca stepped in. The air tensed and they glared at each other, their mutual hatred for the other clear as day. She walked slowly towards her mother, her eyes never leaving the prince, and a frown seemed permanently imprinted on her face.

"How are you today, mother?" She finally said.

"I'm alright, just worried about your grandfather," Astrid said, her eyes wandering up to her daughter's. "No one's seen him all day."

"I'm sure he's alright." Viveca assured.

"Perhaps I should have your father go looking for a bit first, and then we'll conduct a search party." Astrid said.

"Search party?" Cyrus asked, walking into the kitchen. "What about a search party?"

Astrid sighed and looked at her husband. "I can't find my father, and no one has seen him all day."

"She was wondering if you could go looking for him," Loki added in.

"Perhaps I should-" Cyrus began to say but was cut off by sound the front door slamming open.

"The sky is blue, the trees are green, and everyone lives in harmony! The mountain imps sing, the forest pixies ring, and the trolls are tied up with string!" A man's voice loudly sang as banging was heard in the front room.

They all looked at each other before racing out of the kitchen and into the front room. There, they saw Garnock walking into the house carrying a sack that seemed to be moving wildly. He seemed merry as he closed the door behind him, and he looked at them with a broad smile on his face. His eyes scanned them before stopping at Loki, and he smiled wider.

"Laddie," He loudly exclaimed. "I've gotten you a gift! Catch!"

He threw the sack into the air and it sailed towards the prince. Loki held out his arms and the sack heavily landed in them, and he grunted as he stumbled back a bit. He placed the struggling sack on the ground and knelt beside it, looking up at the family. Cyrus, Astrid, and Viveca had all backed away from him, their hands up and glowing, ready to cast a spell. Garnock, on the other hand, looked completely proud of what he'd given Loki, and stared at the prince with a crazed smile on his face.

Loki eyed the struggling sack warily.

What could have Garnock gotten for him? A troll? A goblin? Some other creature? Because the state of Garnock's sanity, Loki almost didn't want to know. But as the sack continued to move, he couldn't help but let his curiosity get the better of him, and he moved his hands to the drawstrings.

"Careful, Loki," Cyrus warned, staring at the moving bag.

Loki nodded and slowly moved the bag to his lap and opened it slightly. Black hair popped out of the opening first, and then to his great surprise, the head of a very disheveled looking Luciana shot out. She looked around the room, her breath in pants. The rest of her body was concealed by the sack, but it was obvious she was cramped in there and currently in an awkward position.

No one said anything; they all just stared at her.

Loki swallowed as he stared at her, flabbergasted yet overjoyed. He thought he'd never see her again, yet here she was sitting in his lap.

"Luciana?"

* * *

**Cliffhanger!**

**Reviews make Fanfiction go round!**

**PS. ****Because of two recent, and fairly large, writing projects I've started, I apologize for any delay in my story updates. There may not be any delays, since the other projects are only just starting to get written up, but there might be so I'm apologizing in advance because I try to run my writing process like a machine...Hence my pen name, The Script Machine. But don't worry, this story will always be my first and main priority.  
**


	30. Chapter Thirty

**Okay so I've given up one of my new writing projects for now because I'm drawing a blank whenever I try to write a chapter for it, so the delay that I talked about in the last chapter will probably not happen.  
**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

Luciana jerked her head over to Loki, and she stared at him.

"Loki?"

"Garnock, you kidnapped your own granddaughter?" Cyrus asked in astonishment.

"Well, I didn't expect any of you to do it!" Garnock exclaimed.

"But you can't just kidnap people! Talon will be furious!" Astrid said, staring at her father.

Loki and Luciana blocked the argument out as they stared at each other in silence, unsure of what to say. He brought his hand up to her cheek, and stroked it with his fingers. She leaned into his touch as her eyes brimmed with tears, and a genuine smile broke out on her face for the first time in weeks. He smiled back at her, and he moved his hand to the back of her head and ran his fingers through her hair.

"...Let's get Luciana's side of the story, then!" Astrid exclaimed. "Luciana?" She turned from her father to look at her daughter.

Luciana panicked and whirled her head away from Loki to look at her mother. "Huh?" She asked rather stupidly.

"What exactly happened last night?" Astrid asked, oblivious to her daughter's alarm.

"Oh, well, I went to bed, as usual," Luciana explained, leaving out her outburst at Talon's family. "Then when I was half asleep Garnock came and abducted me."

"It wasn't abduction!" Garnock protested, stamping his foot on the ground. "It was a successful attempt of bringing you home...without anyone's consent."

"So abduction?" Viveca said, raising an eyebrow.

Garnock sighed in exasperation. "You do realize that if you weren't such an arrogant little princess, someone other than a goblin would find you marriage worthy."

Viveca's jaw dropped to the floor and Loki held back his laughter.

"Luciana, just get out of the sack and we'll figure out what to do after," Cyrus said, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration.

Luciana nodded and she and Loki began to maneuver her out of the sack. "Oh, and now that I'm here," She said, stepping out from the bag. Her eyes wandered to Viveca. "I have something I need to tell you, mother, father. Viveca-"

"Oh, Luciana, how about we go to your room and see if we can't get you changed out of that nightgown," Viveca interrupted, fully aware of what her sister was planning to do. She walked over quickly and ripped Luciana out of Loki's grasp, dragging her out of the front room at top speed.

Loki glared at the retreating figure of Viveca, seething with anger as he watched her pull away Luciana.

Of course, Viveca had to ruin everything. This was the first time Loki had seen Luciana in weeks and he hadn't even said a word to her. He was tempted to follow them and confront Viveca about the entire thing; the lies, the marriage, everything. But he couldn't due to the argument that had broken out between Cyrus and Garnock, who had wrapped his legs and arms around Loki's leg for some reason the prince didn't want to understand.

He blocked out the shouting as he made a very angry mental note to confront Viveca.

Very, very soon.

* * *

"Did you actually think she wouldn't find out?" Loki asked Viveca angrily, glaring at the girl.

"That's exactly what I said," Luciana concurred, her arms crossed as she stared at her sister.

After the argument between Cyrus and Garnock had subsided, Loki was able to free himself from the latter's grasp and go to Luciana's room, where he found the two sisters bickering rather loudly, him soon joining in.

"I only wanted to make sure he stayed away from you," Viveca said, ignoring Loki.

"Why? What problem could you possibly have with me?" Loki asked.

"Excuse me, I wasn't speaking to you," She responded, glaring at the prince.

"I don't care who you were speaking to! What I want to know is why you continue to cause problems in things that honestly don't involve you!"

"Don't you dare speak to me like that!"

"I can speak however I please to the woman who threatened to destroy me!"

"You did what?" Luciana asked, staring at Viveca.

"He's lying," Viveca quickly stated.

"No, I'm not," Loki defended, turning to Luciana. "What happened was-"

"Stop it! He's lying to you, Luciana!" Viveca exclaimed, cutting the prince off.

Viveca and Loki started talking loudly over each other, trying to give their explanation to Luciana. She looked back and forth from the two, unable to process their stories and she quickly grew frustrated herself.

"Enough!" She cried, cutting them off. "You know what your problem is?" She pointed a finger at the two of them. "Is that you two are too much alike! You both can't let anything go, and you both can't keep your tempers in check when you see each other! I know you both want the best for me, but you're not giving me that! Viveca, you're lying to everyone, yet you claim that he's the liar! And by doing that, you're depriving me of my happiness, how could you?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying!" Loki exclaimed.

"Don't think you're getting off blame free," Luciana said to him. "You refuse to be the bigger person and ignore what bothers you! You could have easily tuned out my sister and be done with it, yet you decide you want to argue with her and only make more problems for yourself and me!"

"It's hard to ignore someone when they're constantly ruining everything!" He defended.

"But you let her ruin everything," She said, gesturing to her sister. "Why did you even come here? It's only making everything worse because you're allowing her to walk all over you, and anger you to no end!"

"I came because-"

"I don't want to hear it!" She exclaimed, raising her hands. "Leave, both of you, please."

The two looked at her, unsure of what to say. Viveca was the first to leave, knowing when her sister reached her breaking point. She walked out silently, but of course, sent Loki a cold, harsh glare before stepping out of the room. Loki stayed in his place, staring at Luciana. He opened his mouth to say something but the look on her face told him it was a better idea to go.

He sighed and walked out of the room, but not before placing a light kiss on her cheek and smiling somewhat sadly at her.

* * *

"Why are you taking me here?" Loki asked, standing in front of Cyrus' study door.

"Because I want to, now get in there!" Garnock said, opening the door and roughly shoving Loki inside. "Oh and before I forget," He said as he followed in after the prince and loudly slammed the door shut. He pulled out a wooden spoon from his robe and gave it to him. "Here's a spoon, just in case."

Loki raised an eyebrow at the man but didn't respond as he looked at Cyrus.

Cyrus looked up from a letter and sighed. "Good evening, Garnock, Loki." He looked back down at his letter. "What brings you here?"

"Are you sending Luciana back to Talon's?" Garnock asked.

"Yes. Tomorrow."

"Well, don't!"

Cyrus sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Why?"

"Because Loki's got something to tell you!" Garnock exclaimed, and he harshly hit Loki on the back. "Go on, lad, tell him!"

Loki looked at Garnock, confused. "Tell him what?"

Garnock sighed in exasperation, and he brought a hand to his forehead. "Oh, for the sake of the Nine Realms...Tell him you're desperately in love with Luciana!" He said as if it were obvious. "Gods, you'd think for a prince he'd be better educated!"

Loki looked at the man in horror, his mouth ajar.

Cyrus knowing Loki's affections for Luciana was the last thing he needed, but of course, Garnock had to expose everything. Loki could have slapped himself for trusting a mentally unstable man with a secret, let alone one who was related to the exact person he didn't need finding out. He was torn between being furious with himself or with Garnock, and his grip tightened on the wooden spoon as his gaze on the old man turned into a hard glare.

His eyes flickered to Cyrus for a moment, and the man looked astonished as he stared at the prince.

"You're in love with my daughter?" He asked.

Loki spotted a way out of this. He could easily deny what Garnock had said, and due to the older man's state of mind. He could say that it was all in the old coot's head and that he hadn't the slightest idea to what he was talking about, and Cyrus would believe him. It occurred to Loki that he could admit what Garnock said, but he risked so much. Cyrus had no problem with the prince, but he could easily find one if Loki admitted his love for Luciana.

Deciding on the former, Loki opened his mouth to speak, but Garnock beat him to it.

"Of course he is! Can't you tell? No prince in his right goddamn mind would travel to the middle of one of the darkest forests in Asgard, just so they could _learn._ He's in love with your daughter and wants to marry her! Are you so daft that you cannot see that?" Garnock began to shout and jump up and down like a child.

Loki was startled by what the man had said, but knew he could still get his way out of it.

"Is this true?" Cyrus asked, staring at the prince.

Loki opened his mouth, ready to deny everything.

"Oh, don't ask him!" Garnock interrupted. "He'll only deny it! I have proof!"

Loki watched as the man conjured a crystal ball and held it up for Cyrus to see. He was horrified as the image of him and Garnock sitting in the cavern slowly appeared in it.

"_I mean_," He saw Garnock say. "_You're in love with Luciana_."

He watched himself looking at the ground.

"_Ah, so it is her..._" Garnock had trailed off before letting out a loud cry and jumping up. "_Oh this is wonderful news! Now I won't have to put on a fake smile at the wedding_!"

"_We...we aren't getting married_," He saw himself say sadly. "_At least not with the way things are going. Cyrus and Astrid seem set on Ramsay_."

As the image disappeared and Garnock put away the glass ball, Cyrus stared at Loki, who only swallowed.

"So you _are_ in love with Luciana?" Cyrus asked, but it came out as a statement. He stood up from his desk and eyed the prince.

There was no getting out of it, the proof was staring Loki in the face. His silver tongue would be of no use to him now, which seemed to happen a lot with this family. He had to tell him now, no matter what the consequences.

He sighed.

"Yes."

* * *

**A lot of you probably think I'm going really easy on Viveca, which after what she's done isn't really fair. But there is genius behind my madness, I'm just not telling you guys what that genius is yet.**

**Reviews?  
**

**PS. Since I edit all of my stories myself, I've decided I'm gonna try my hand at being a Beta Reader. So if any of you guys have any stories you'd like me to proof read or anything like that just PM me. (Yes, I've turned that on, but for a limited time only.) I'll probably only take two stories for now just so I can get a feel on what it's like to be a Beta Reader and to see if I would like to do it more in the future.**


	31. Chapter Thirty-One

**You're probably wondering why I've updated two days in a row. Well, today is my birthday and as my gift to you (Yes, that's backwards but whatever) I am giving you another chapter, and it's one that you'll really, really love.**

**PS. Don't expect me to give you presents on my birthday often, because really who does that?**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

Cyrus stared blankly at Loki, who stared back.

Garnock leaned over to Loki and whispered. "Use the spoon if you have to. I have a sack you can stuff Luciana into, if you want."

"Garnock," Loki warned, his voice low.

Cyrus cleared his throat and sat back down at his desk. "Well, Loki, this is quite...unexpected."

The prince stayed silent, his eyes flickering to his feet.

"Oh, Cyrus, just let the lad marry Luciana! They'll both be better off!" Garnock exclaimed.

Cyrus sighed. "Garnock, I can't just go back on the arrangement. The wedding will be happening quite soon, and it's too late to stop it."

"To hell with the arrangement! This is the prince of Asgard!"

"I understand that, but I can't-"

"At least this bloke actually loves your daughter!" Garnock exclaimed. "If Ramsay really loved Luciana, he'd be searching all of the Nine Realms for her. But is he? No! I bet if Luciana suddenly just disappeared, Loki wouldn't rest until he found her! Whereas Ramsay is simply sitting at home enjoying tea and waiting for _you_ to do _his _job of protecting his wife-to-be!"

"I-"

"Cyrus, ask him yourself!" Garnock interrupted his son-in-law, pushing the prince closer towards the desk.

Cyrus sighed and looked at Loki, an unreadable expression on his face. He stayed silent, simply staring at the prince. He rested his elbows on his desk and sighed again, pondering over what had taken place.

"Do you really love my daughter?" He asked finally.

"I would die for her," Loki responded firmly.

Cyrus sighed again, and leaned back in his chair. He seemed to stay that way for hours, simply staring at Loki.

"Cyrus, if you don't let the lad marry Luciana, I'll never leave." Garnock stated.

Cyrus was still as his eyes flickered towards his father-in-law, then back to Loki.

Hours seemed to pass in silence as Cyrus pondered over his options; his daughter's possible happiness or devastation. He could let Luciana marry Loki easily, but what about Ramsay? What about all the preparations that had taken place? Was he to let that just all go to waste? But there was something about the way Loki stared at him that stopped him from refusing; a look of near desperation and hope attempting to hide behind emerald green eyes.

Cyrus sighed once more. "It's settled then." He knew he was taking a risk, and he might regret it later on. But despite that, the thought of a happy Luciana pushed away all doubts and he gave in.

Loki's eyebrows furrowed. "What?"

"I am allowing you to marry my daughter if, and only if, she accepts your proposal. If she accepts, then I will give you my blessing. If she does not, then she will remain in the arrangement with Ramsay."

Loki's heart leapt and he looked at Cyrus in shock. "You're really letting me marry her? After all you've planned for her, you're just going to let me marry her?"

"Garnock makes a point; Ramsay is an intelligent young man, but in all honesty, he's not entirely what I had hoped for Luciana. Talon will certainly be upset with me, but as a father, I now realize I cannot allow my daughter to live out her life unhappy. Loki, promise me, that if you are married, you'll do everything in your power to make her happy. Promise me that you'll keep her safe."

Loki nodded. "I promise, sir."

"Very well," Cyrus said.

Garnock cheered. "Oh, this is wonderful news! I was wondering when I would be able to stop my sabotaging!"

Cyrus frowned. "You're the one who's been ruining the wedding plans?"

"Of course! I had to get rid of Ramsay somehow! Why do you think I did it, because I'm mad?" Garnock asked.

Cyrus sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Now, laddie," Garnock said, turning to Loki. "Get into that royal attire of yours, and get yourself your wife!"

Loki smiled and nodded, turning to leave.

"Wait!" Garnock said, and Loki stopped in his tracks. "Give me my spoon."

* * *

Loki stood in front of Luciana's bedroom door, clad in his armour complete with his helmet and cape.

Nervousness had suddenly taken over Loki, and he was hesitant to knock on the door.

Honestly, he didn't expect that this would happen. He thought he'd be home at the palace by now, wallowing in his anger and sadness. Instead, he was standing outside Luciana's door, about to ask for her hand. This is what he wanted though, and when he had attempted last time he hadn't felt like this. Perhaps it was the fact that she was angry with him, and could easily refuse.

A part of him was screaming for him to knock on the door and ask, but another was calculating every single outcome, the negative ones standing out more in his mind.

He took a deep breath. "Just do it..." He muttered to himself.

He couldn't believe he was hesitant. He couldn't believe that he; the normally silver-tongued, cunning, and clever prince could hardly bring himself to simply ask for Luciana's hand. Then again, she had always had the ability to completely steer him away from his nature. Why should now be any different?

Loki cleared his throat and knocked on the door, listening for an answer.

"Come in," He heard her voice call softly, and he opened the door.

He stepped into the room, closing the door behind him. He spotted her lying in her bed, her back to him as the blankets covered her body.

"Going to bed early?" He asked, walking towards her.

She turned her head and sent him a small smile. "Most likely," Her eyes wandered to his attire. "Why are you wearing that?" Her voice was quiet, and had a small hint of sadness to it, which did not go unnoticed by Loki.

"You seem unhappy, darling heart," He ignored her question, sitting on the edge of her bed.

Her eyes fell to the floor. "I don't want to go back."

"Perhaps you won't have to."

"I do, my parents are making me."

Loki sighed and got off the bed, moving to the floor crouch in front of her face. "I wouldn't be so sure of that."

Luciana's eyebrows furrowed. "What makes you say that?"

He sent her a small smile and placed his lips on hers, his hand moving to her cheek. He pulled away slightly and kissed her nose, his cold breath hitting her face. He moved his lips and kissed her again, more passionately this time. He ran his fingers through her hair lovingly, moving it away from her face. He pulled away from her and stared into her eyes, smiling at her.

He took her hand in his, his fingers tracing the lines in her palm. He brought her hand up to his lips and kissed her palm, his kisses trailing down to her wrist.

"I love you," He murmured, his lips still resting on the spot.

"I love you too," She said, smiling softly as he gave her wrist a small kiss.

He sighed, looking into her eyes. "Luciana," He said, looking at her hand. "If I asked you to marry me..." He paused for a moment. "Would you?"

Luciana looked at him, her expression a mix of shock and happiness. "You...You want me to marry you?"

Loki nodded. "Yes,"

She sat up, her hand still in his. "You truly want me to marry you?"

"More than anything."

"But I'm...I'm promised to Ramsay..."

"Your father says he will end the arrangement if you accept my proposal, but only if you accept."

She could hardly process what was happening. "You really want me to marry you?" She asked again.

"Yes, I do," He said. "That's the whole reason I came here, to hopefully persuade your parents into letting you marry me. I was originally going to ask the last night we saw each other, but you said you were promised to Ramsay, so I couldn't."

She looked at him, tears brimming in her eyes.

He noticed this and let go of her hand, taking off his helmet and placing his hands on her knees.

"Darling heart," He said, staring into her eyes. "You don't have to marry me if you don't want to. But you would truly make me the happiest man alive if you did. I can't stand to be apart from you, and I can't imagine my life without you. I never thought that I'd fall in love with the daughter of a sorceress, to be honest I scoffed at the idea, but then I met you."

"I couldn't believe my eyes when I first saw you, you were, and still are, the image of perfection." He continued. "I would watch you when we weren't together; I'd follow you around the palace unseen and always admire you. You have captured my heart and soul, and I don't intend for them to be released. Luciana, I'd be honoured to have you as my wife, and I would spend the rest of my days marveling at how you so graciously allowed yourself to marry me, a man who is so unworthy of your heart. Please, Luciana, I beg of you. Will you marry me?"

By now tears were falling from Luciana's eyes, and she wiped them away with her free hand.

"Yes," She said, nodding. "I'll marry you."

Loki out the breath he was holding and let his head fall into her lap. She smiled at him and ran her fingers through his hair, happy tears still sliding down her cheek. He removed his head from her lap and picked her off the bed, holding her in his arms bridal style. He crashed his lips onto hers as he spun her around, chuckling with her through the kiss. He removed his lips from hers and placed her on the ground, smiling at his wife-to-be.

He sat down on the edge of the bed and took her hand, rubbing it.

"I love you," He said, pulling her closer.

"I love you too," She said, a smile permanent on her face.

He let go of her hand and wrapped his arms around her, his head resting on her stomach. "Say that again," He said, his voice muffled as he buried his head in her stomach.

She chuckled. "I love you too."

* * *

**Alright, that's set! Now you guys probably see why I added Garnock into the story. He's the entire reason that Loki and Luciana are getting married!  
**

**I'm actually surprised by the reaction he has gotten; I never imagined he'd be one of the most favoured characters that I created!  
**

**Anyways, reviews are always welcomed here! Now excuse me while I celebrate another year of my life!  
**


	32. Chapter Thirty-Two

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

The next day Loki and Luciana announced their engagement Astrid and Viveca, much to the latter's horror.

She'd lost.

Her father actually gave permission for Loki to marry Luciana, and Astrid had decided to support it. Viveca had worked so hard trying to keep them apart, so hard trying to make sure Loki never came near Luciana again. All of her work was for nothing, and for that she was livid. She couldn't believe her parents were fine with ending an arrangement just for Loki, they were usually so stubborn.

Perhaps Loki had done what he had set out to do; make Astrid and Cyrus love him enough to let him marry Luciana.

Viveca cursed his silver tongue, she cursed the day he had met Luciana, she cursed the second they fell in love, and she cursed the moment he was born. She cursed everything about the prince, and more, still unable to extinguish her anger.

"Will you be returning to the castle today?" Astrid asked.

"Tomorrow," Loki replied, his arm wrapped around Luciana's waist. "And I do hope you'll allow me to bring Luciana along with me."

"But of course! She is your soon-to-be wife, after all," Astrid said.

"But I have nothing to wear," Luciana said. "All my clothes are still at Talon's home, I only have this!" She gestured to her nightgown and robe.

"Well, I'm sure Viveca could lend you something," Astrid assured.

"Yes and the castle can provide you new clothes when we get there," Loki said, pulling Luciana closer to him.

Viveca smiled bitterly. "I'll go get you a dress." With that she turned on her heel and left the room, unable to stay in the same place as Loki any longer.

Loki kissed Luciana's hair to hide his smirk, his eyes watching the retreating figure of Viveca.

"I'll go with her," Astrid said. "Just to make sure she picks out something nice." She walked quickly out of the room, leaving her daughter and future son-in-law alone.

Loki smirked and stepped in front of Luciana. "We're alone," His eyebrows were raised suggestively and he took her hand, pulling her closer to his chest.

"Loki, no," She said, playfully pushing him away.

"Why not? We are to be married, after all." He said, bringing his lips to her neck.

"Loki-"

"Oh, I love it when you say my name. Say it again."

"No."

"Say my name."

"No, I'm not going to say it!" Luciana laughed, finally managing to remove Loki from her neck.

Loki smirked mischievously and grabbed her sides, beginning to tickle her relentlessly.

"No, no, no! Stop, stop!" She said through laughs and snorts, struggling to break free from his grip.

"Then say it! Say it, say my name!" He laughed.

"Fine, Loki, just let go of me!" She gave in.

He smiled and let go of her, laughing as she regained her breath. After she calmed herself, he wrapped his arms around her stomach and rested his head on her shoulder. He planted light kisses on her neck and smiled as she put her hands on his.

"I love you," She said.

"I love you too," He replied, kissing her cheek once before releasing her. "Just think," He said, taking her hands. "Tomorrow we'll tell my family about our engagement, and then soon we'll be married."

"Will your family be alright with us getting married?" She asked; worry seeping its way into her voice.

"Of course," He assured, moving his hand to play with the end of her hair. "Thor and my mother have already given me their blessing, my father will soon follow."

"They know?" She asked, sounding surprised. "I would have thought the God of Mischief would be better at keeping secrets."

"In my defense, I was intoxicated when Thor found out." He defended.

"And when your mother did?"

"She saw us coming back from one of our midnight trips. Again, not my fault."

Luciana chuckled and kissed him, smiling under the kiss.

"Loki!" They heard Garnock yell from upstairs. "Cyrus would like to speak to you! Get up here, laddie, or I'll have the forest pixies drag you!"

Loki groaned and broke away from the kiss. "I'll be back."

* * *

"I'll get straight to the point," Cyrus said, his hands clasped in front of him. "I've been told you were in a secret courtship with Luciana, is this true?"

Loki's mouth opened slightly as he stared at the man, not caring that Garnock was currently poking his side.

He knew exactly who was behind this: Viveca.

He should have known Viveca wouldn't give up that easily, she was much too headstrong to go down without a proper fight. He was furious at Viveca for revealing that, especially after he had finally gotten what he wanted. But he quickly had a plan, and no one, not even Garnock, could ruin it.

"No, sir," Loki lied smoothly, pretending to be confused. "Why would think something like that?"

Cyrus sighed. "Viveca told me. She said that you came here for that reason. I gather by now that your true motives for seeking an apprenticeship were to convince me that you were a better suitor than Ramsay, but what I was unaware of was that you had previously courted my daughter."

"Well, no offense to you or Viveca, sir," Loki said. "But although I am deeply in love with Luciana, I haven't participated in any courtship with her whatsoever."

Cyrus raised an eyebrow at him. "Are you implying that Viveca was lying about this?"

"She could have made an innocent assumption, but she has never been the fondest of me."

"And lying could be her way of getting rid of you?"

"It's quite possible, sir."

Cyrus leaned back in his chair and eyed the prince.

"I know it may seem that Viveca's claim is true," Loki continued. "After all, Luciana did accept my proposal, and she has told you her affections. But I assure you, nothing has happened before then, apart from my admiring your daughter, of course."

Cyrus was no fool, Loki knew this quite well.

But he was the God of Mischief, the Lie-Smith, the sly one. He went by many cunning titles, and they all rang true to his nature. He knew he could talk the man into thinking Viveca was lying, or at least save his marriage.

Now, Cyrus was wary to believe Loki, due to both stubbornness and the prince's reputation. But he knew Viveca's tendency to throw tantrums when she didn't get what she wanted or something didn't go her way, and he knew she's do anything to make sure the odds were always in her favour; that she was the one holding the cards. He also thought about Luciana's reluctance to marry Ramsay, it was so out of character for her; a mild mannered and obedient girl.

"Alright, Loki," Cyrus finally said. Viveca could be telling the truth, but so could Loki. Cyrus was tired from all this turmoil and frankly didn't care anymore, he just wanted Luciana to marry _somebody_. "I see your point. Forgive me if I've insulted you."

"Not at all, sir," Loki assured. "It's always intelligent to consider others opinions and facts, for their good and your own."

Cyrus nodded. "That is true. Very well, Loki, you may leave. And, Garnock?"

"Hmm?" The old man asked.

"Stop poking him."

* * *

"You lied to my father?" Luciana asked, looking Loki up and down.

"I had to," Loki defended. "I couldn't risk losing you!"

"Well, I still don't think it was right to lie to him, especially when he's going to be your new father-in-law."

"Alright, I'm sorry. But I didn't want Viveca to ruin everything once again."

"I'll handle Viveca later. Right now, I'm more concerned about how we hid something relatively important from my parents."

Loki sighed, sitting down on Luciana's bed as she walked about the room. "It's not that important, darling."

"Well, what if Viveca tells your parents-"

"My mother already knows."

"What about your father?"

"Darling heart, stop worrying."

Luciana rolled her eyes. "I can't stop worrying, it's in my nature." She walked over to her couch and straightened and rearranged the pillows like a madwomen, her perfectionism beginning to show.

He smiled at her response and laid down on the bed.

"No, no, no," She said quickly, walking over to him. "Get off; I need to go to sleep."

He smirked up at her. "You can still sleep, darling," He said, patting the place beside him. "Right here."

"Loki, come on, be serious," She said, placing her hands on her hips. "Get off."

Luciana leaned down to pull him off the bed, when he grabbed her hands and pulled her down beside him. He smirked at her as her rolled on top of her, a mischievous glint in his eye.

"That's much better," He said.

"Loki, no," She said sternly.

"Oh, come now, darling heart. No one's going to know," He said, lowering his head towards her ear. "It'll be our little secret." He whispered this in her ear seductively.

"Loki..." She warned, furious at herself for beginning to blush. "No, get off. This isn't proper." She pushed him off, and he reluctantly collapsed beside her.

"Fine then," He said. "I'll wait until the wedding night."

"Good," She said smiling as she moved under the covers and rested her head on the pillow.

"But," He said, holding up a finger. "You can't make me leave."

"Loki-" She began.

"No, you can't. I'm the prince of Asgard, and if I wish to spend the night in your room, I will." He insisted, and he rested his head on her legs.

She scoffed and rolled her eyes at him. "Please. You aren't at the castle, _Your Highness_. If my parents see you out of your bed and in mine, they'll lose it."

Loki rolled his eyes at her and waved his hand. A duplicate of Loki suddenly appeared in the middle of her room, and smirked at Luciana. The duplicate held her gaze for a few moments before walking out of the room, most likely to go to Loki's room in place of him.

"There, now they'll have no reason to look for me here." He said.

Luciana rolled her eyes. "You and your damn title..." She muttered. "You know, just because we're engaged, it doesn't mean that this is any more proper than it was before.

Loki only smirked at her as he went under the covers and laid beside her, wrapping his arms around her waist.

She let out a huff and crossed her arms. "You aren't going to take 'no' for an answer, are you?"

"No," He chuckled, laying his head on the pillow. "Darling heart, relax, its only one night and I promise I won't do anything."

She let out one final huff. "Fine, one night. But I swear if you do anything, I'll leave you stranded in the forest."

"Someone's bitter," He joked.

She smiled at him and rested her head on his chest. He smiled back at her and kissed her gently, burying his head in her hair.

"You're so beautiful," He whispered. "So very lovely."

She smiled and closed her eyes, his whispers and heartbeat lulling her peacefully to sleep.

* * *

**Oh my god, 98 reviews? **

**Guys, I love you! And I am always thankful for your support. I am NOT a confident person and I regularly compare my writing style to other peoples and always think that they're much better than me. I've even read some of your guy's stories and thought 'Wow, these guys are great and they like my work?' So it's really nice to have the people who I admire as writers as people who can counter-attack my worst critic: Me.  
**

**Thanks again! Now, smile, be happy, and review.**


	33. Chapter Thirty-Three

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

Luciana awoke that morning wrapped in Loki's arms, his steady heartbeat still beside her ear.

She turned her head to look out the window, and the morning light began to grow brighter outside her window, the shadows of tress slowly forming on her floor. She turned her head back and looked at Loki, who was still fast asleep. She smiled softly and placed her hand on his cheek, caressing his cool skin with the back of her hand. She removed her hand from his face and sat up, letting out a yawn as she removed herself from Loki's grasp, his arms falling limply onto the mattress.

Loki's eyes fluttered open at this and he moaned softly. He lifted his head up and squinted as he looked around the room, his green eyes scanning the area before landing on Luciana. He let his head fall back into the pillow and he looked up at her.

"What time is it?" He asked, sounding tired.

"The sun just rose," She responded, moving a piece of his disheveled hair away from his face.

He mumbled something incoherent and pulled her down gently into him. He put a hand on the back of her neck and brought her forehead to his lips, trailing kisses down to her lips. He allowed his lips to linger on hers before he buried his head in her neck, draping an arm over her body. She smiled softly and closed her eyes, her hands idly playing with his hair.

"Today we go back to the palace," Loki mumbled, kissing her neck gently.

She hummed in response.

He removed his head from her neck and sat up, looking down at her. "I love you,"

Her eyes were still closed, but she smiled. "I love you too,"

Suddenly, they heard a knock on the door. "Luciana," Astrid's voice called. "Are you awake yet?"

Panic shot through the two, and Luciana opened her eyes.

"Get under the covers," She whispered urgently to Loki, and he nodded.

"Luciana?" Astrid called, still knocking.

"One minute," Luciana called back, adjusting the covers over Loki's head. She hurriedly moved beside him to make it look like his body under the covers were her legs, and she straightened the blanket before sitting up straight. "Come in."

Astrid opened the door, a green dress slung over her arm, and she smiled at her daughter. "Good," She said, walking over to the bed. She placed the dress beside Luciana and smoothed out the wrinkles. "Here's the dress you can wear for your trip."

"Oh, thank you," Luciana responded, smiling at her mother.

She felt a hand touch her stomach and she jumped, letting out a small shriek. She could imagine the smirk planted on Loki's face right about now, and she practically heard the chuckle he was most likely holding back.

Her daughter's small outburst didn't go unnoticed to Astrid, and she raised an eyebrow. "Something the matter?"

"What? Oh, no, I just thought I saw a...spider." Luciana said, trying to look completely innocent.

Astrid's eyebrows furrowed, but she nodded. "Alright, then. Well, I'll let you get ready. Oh, and wear your hair in a bun, please. It's much more elegant."

Luciana nodded as Astrid left the room, and let out a breath of relief as the door closed.

Loki sat up and laughed. "You saw a spider? Is that really the best you could come up with?"

"I wouldn't have had to come up with anything if you hadn't done that!" She said, hitting him in the stomach.

He chuckled and kissed her cheek lovingly.

"Alright, now leave," She said, pushing him away from her. "I have to get ready and so do you."

Loki frowned slightly, but it was soon replaced with his signature smirk and a suggestive eyebrow raise. Luciana did a double-take at this and scoffed as she pushed him out of the bed, sending him to the floor laughing. He looked up at her, still smirking and she shook her head as she blushed.

"Don't even think about it."

* * *

The doors to the throne room opened, and Frigga and Odin looked towards them. Loki walked in, holding Luciana's hand as he led her towards the throne where his father sat. He smiled at the two of them, squeezing Luciana's hand and sending her a loving glance.

"Loki," Frigga greeted warmly, running over to her son. "I'm so glad you've returned." She hugged him tightly. The queen's eyes wandered to Luciana as she pulled away from her son, and she smiled at her knowingly. "And you've brought Luciana."

"I have," He nodded as he looked up at his father. "I have something to tell you," He looked from his mother to father. "The both of you."

"Alright, Loki," Odin said, standing up from his throne. "Proceed."

Loki looked at Luciana and smiled, receiving a smile back."Luciana and I are getting married."

Odin looked slightly shocked by this, and Frigga smiled wider. "Oh, that's wonderful!" She said, going to hug her future daughter-in-law. She pulled away and smiled at the girl before looking at Odin. "Isn't this wonderful?"

Odin had a serious look on his face before breaking out into a rare small smile. "Yes, it is. Luciana will make a fine bride, Loki."

Loki couldn't help but feel relieved knowing his father approved of the marriage, and he sent him a grin. "Thank you, father."

He pulled Luciana closer to him by the waist and kissed her temple, a smile reaching her face.

Suddenly the throne room doors opened and the four looked over at them. In walked an angry, yet confused looking Thor, who had a man dressed in a brown robe wrapped around his leg. His leg dragged as he walked towards the group, and they all looked at the man in shock.

"Who is this man?" Thor demanded loudly, pointing to the man on his leg.

"Harvey!" The man yelled, and Luciana immediately recognized his voice to be Garnock's.

"Oh," She said in distress, and she buried her head in Loki's shoulder.

"Garnock?" Loki asked in shock. "How did you get here?"

"You know him?" Thor asked.

Luciana brought her head out of Loki's shoulder. "He's my grandfather." She walked towards Thor and bent down, pulling on Garnock's back. "Come now, Garnock, let go of him."

"No, I refuse! If I can't do as I please, then my name isn't Harvey Adalricson!" Garnock exclaimed.

"It's not," Luciana stated.

"Oh, it isn't?" He asked, looking up at her. She shook her head. "Oh..." He said, sounding disappointed. "Alright then, you can drag me away!" He said, quickly recovering from his sadness. He released Thor's leg and stood up, walking off around the throne room.

"I'm sorry," Luciana apologized to everyone. "I don't know how he got here."

"It's quite alright," Frigga said, shaking her head. She watched Garnock sniff a wall and she tilted her head. "Perhaps you and I should take him somewhere he can't..."

"Cause any damage?" Luciana finished.

Frigga nodded and walked towards the man, Luciana following after kissing Loki's cheek.

Thor looked at Loki. "Why is Luciana here?"

"Loki and Luciana are to be married, Thor," Odin said, looking at his eldest son.

A knowing smile appeared on Thor's face as he looked at his younger brother. He walked over to him and pulled him into a tight hug, depriving Loki of air. "This is wonderful news, brother! I am quite happy for you both!"

"Thank you, Thor," Loki wheezed.

Thor thankfully let go of his younger brother, allowing him to take a deep breath, only for it to be slapped out of him as Thor hit him hard on the back. Loki panted as he watched his mother and Luciana usher a ranting Garnock out of the room, and he smiled at Luciana's back.

* * *

**Reviews please!**

**PS. I published a new story yesterday and I'd love for you guys to check it out, if you're Harry Potter fans that is. It's called What Lies Within if you're interested.**

**Anyways, bye! Love you guys!**


	34. Chapter Thirty-Four

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"Oh, Luciana, you look lovely," Frigga complimented, smiling.

Luciana spun around slowly, inspecting her gown. The dress was beautiful; soft fabric, rich blue colour, and the elaborately detailed gold band that went round her waist. The modesty of the gown only added to her fondness of it, for the high neckline and long length prevented all skin, with the exception of her neck and arms, from showing. It was an exquisite, ravishing dress; she could hardly take her eyes off of it. It was a dress fit for a royal.

"Thank you," She finally said. "It's lovely."

"There are three more if you'd like," Frigga said, walking over to the bed. "I've sent for the seamstress, she'll be here to do your measurements. For the time being you'll have to wear these."

"Thank you," Luciana said again, walking over to the woman.

The three other dresses were just as lovely. Each had the same neckline and length as the one she wore, and they would've been identical if it wasn't for the difference in colour and detailing. The first was the colour of amethyst, and even had the precious gemstone encrusted in the middle of the small flowers of the vine detailing. The second one also had gemstones, but they were rubies that covered the entire top half of the dress and slowly decreased in number as they reached towards the bottom of the dress, blending in with the red fabric.

She couldn't help but be reminded of Loki when her eyes landed on the last dress. The top part of the dress was gold and armoured, intricate designs of tree branches engraved into the metal. The bottom half was a brilliant emerald green, nearly identical to Loki's eyes. She ran her hand over the lush, green fabric, a smiling creeping onto her face.

"That one you'll wear for royal affairs after you marry," Frigga said. "I'm sure Loki will like it."

"It's lovely," Luciana said. "They're all lovely."

A knock on the door made the two women look up. "And it looks like you'll have more," Frigga stated. "Come in!"

A grey-haired woman carrying a basket walked in, and she bowed to the queen. "You wished for Lady Luciana's measurements to be done, milady?"

"Yes," Frigga nodded. "Thank you."

"Of course, my queen," The woman said, and she walked towards Luciana.

She took a measuring tape out of the basket and wrapped it around Luciana's waist, nodding as she released her. She did the measurements quickly and silently, and Luciana could only watch as the woman did her job. The seamstress finally put the measuring tape back into the basket and bowed to the queen.

"It is done," She said.

"Good, thank you," Frigga said.

"Yes, thank you," Luciana said as the woman went to leave.

The woman only gave her a curt nod, eying the girl warily as she closed the door behind her, and Frigga sighed. "I apologize for her rudeness."

"Oh, no, it's fine," Luciana assured, waving her hand. "I'm used to it."

"But you shouldn't have to be," Frigga said. "You and your family are no threat to Asgard, neither are all the other magicians who choose to remain in hiding. Asgard doesn't realize that we use magic every day, in some form, even the ones who rule them do. Heimdall can hear and see all, Thor can summon lightning, and even the Allfather uses magic. Even I practice magic, and I've taught Loki as well."

"It is s not fair that Asgard thinks of you as scum, when you are no different than them. I've said this to you before, but magic is the heart of Asgard; it lives and breathes on it. And without the magicians, who can wield and master the power in so many different ways, Asgard simply wouldn't be as it is today. And I believe, when you and Loki are married, you'll show the people of Asgard just that."

Luciana stayed silent as she stared at the queen.

Frigga sighed, and then smiled. "Well, no matter. Either way, Asgard will just have to get used to having a sorceress as their princess."

Luciana smiled at her. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

* * *

"Garnock, I really think you should go home," Luciana said sternly, watching as her grandfather walked around her bedroom.

"Nonsense! I'll have to come back for the wedding anyway!" Garnock exclaimed.

"Yes, but for the time being it's better you stay at home."

"Luciana, I am a grown man. I can do as I please. If I want to stay at the castle, then I will."

She sighed at the man. "What if the Allfather refuses?"

"Then I'll hide in your closet!" He exclaimed proudly. He marched over to the closet door and walked in, slamming the door shut behind him. "There," He yelled. "No one will find me in here!"

Luciana sighed again. "Fine, I'll ask the Allfather if you can stay."

"Excellent! That's my Lucy!" He yelled, using his nickname for her. He came out of the closet and wandered over to her. "How about we go hunting for toadstool fairies, like we did when you were a young lass?

"I'm a bit too old for that, grandfather," She responded.

"Hogwash! I'm five thousand, one hundred and sixty-eight, and even I still enjoy a good hunt once in awhile!" He exclaimed, pulling on her arm.

"Grandfather, no," She said sternly. "Besides there aren't any toadstools here."

"There are in the kitchen!"

"Those are mushrooms."

"Mushrooms, toadstools, they all look the same, so therefore they are!"

"Grandfather, please don't disturb the kitchen staff. The seamstress already isn't fond of me; I don't the entire kingdom to be!"

"Oh, relax, Luciana," Garnock said, waving his hand. "The kingdom won't think badly of you. And if they do, well, what could happen?"

* * *

Within three days, the announcement of the engagement spread like wildfire, receiving mixed responses. Many of the Asgardians were pleased with the announcement, others didn't care, and some, inevitably, were quite angry about it. They worried for the sake of Asgard, and wondered if Luciana would attempt to take the throne. But the Allfather stood his ground, insisting that the marriage would continue no matter what.

Luciana had been trying to make a good impression; being friendlier with the servants, visiting the kitchens and the stables, and making sure Garnock didn't break anything or offend anyone. Things had been going well, a few maids and guards would bow respectfully at her, the former sometimes even flashing her a smile. But still, there were many the either completely ignored her, or muttered insults under their breaths. She tried not to let this bother her, and she tried to ignore the negativity. But that was a hard thing to do when it was constantly surrounding her. Nevertheless, she tried to keep an upbeat attitude and a smile on her face.

Her family-to-be, on the other hand, handled things differently than her. Odin and Frigga handled things in a civil manner; warning the citizens and servants sternly about disrespecting a future royal, and the consequences for it. Loki had done the same for awhile, but after two days he became frustrated and began to join Thor in yelling at anyone who reacted scornful, only making things worse for Luciana, who would apologize to whoever was yelled at.

She couldn't believe all this had happened in three days, to her it felt like weeks. She didn't think things could get any worse until a blonde girl, similar to her in age and height, marched up to her and scowled.

"You must think you're really something grand, don't you?" The girl asked, crossing her arms.

"I beg your pardon?" Luciana asked, her eyebrows furrowed.

"With all your powers and sort," The girl spat. "Just because the royal family has fallen for your witchcraft, doesn't mean the rest of Asgard has!"

Luciana sighed. "I understand that I don't have the best reputation in the entire kingdom," She said civilly. "But I assure you, I ave placed no spell on Loki and his-"

Suddenly, the girl rolled her eyes brought her hand up and slapped her across the face, shocking Luciana into silence. No one, not a single person, had ever resorted to violence on her before. Of course, she had suffered through verbal abuse and cold glares, but she had never once been struck across the face. She was fully prepared for the people of Asgard to be angry, she just didn't expect them to get violent.

"Who are you?" She finally asked, breaking herself out of her shock.

"It doesn't matter who I am," The girl said, seething with anger. "All that matters is the fact that you won't be getting married to Loki. I won't allow it!"

"Well, I would like to know who you are and what makes you think you have the right to slap me across the face!" Luciana said, looking at her in shock.

The girl scoffed. "I can assure you that I'm much higher in title than you. You should just leave; Loki deserves a girl who can _at least_ meet his standards."

"And that would be you, I suppose?"

"I believe that's none of _your_ business. Just leave, and take your witchcraft with you."

"I tried to explain this to you; I am _not_ using any sort of witchcraft on Loki or his family!"

"And you're a liar as well! Just another thing to add to your endless list of faults."

"Listen," Luciana was now shouting. "I haven't done anything wrong, so I would appreciate it if you-"

"Luciana?" She heard the voice Loki asked from behind her, and she turned around.

"Loki," Both girls said simultaneously.

"Loki," The blonde said again. "What are you thinking? You're not serious about marrying her," She pointed to Luciana. "You can't be."

"What are you doing here?" Loki asked her.

"When I heard about your engagement to this _girl_," She replied. "I knew she had to be tricking you. She's using some sort of spell on you, Loki. Can't you see that?"

"She's not using any magic on me, Sigyn. I, of all people, would know that!"

"Would you? If you really knew then you would remember all the wonderful times we had, all the nights we spent together."

"I do remember them, but they don't mean anything to me anymore."

"Loki, who is this?" Luciana cut in, staring at Loki.

He looked at her and sighed. "This is Sigyn, the Goddess of Fidelity, and my former lover."

* * *

**Drama!**

**First Viveca, now Sigyn. This, like my family reunions, will not end well.**

**Reviews!**


	35. Chapter Thirty-Five

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"I'm sorry," Luciana said, shaking her head. "What?"

"Don't act stupid," Sigyn said. "You heard him. Though I'm certain that 'former' will change once you leave the palace."

"That's not going to happen, Sigyn," Loki said

She looked from Loki to Luciana, in fury. "You're not serious. You can't marry her! Especially not after we-"

"Luciana," Loki cut Sigyn off quickly, turning to Luciana. "Go to your chambers. I'll be there in a moment."

"No, Loki, not until you tell me why-" Luciana tried to protest.

"Luciana, please, I promise I'll be there in a moment." He assured her firmly.

She looked from him and Sigyn, who glared at her. Loki's eyes silently told her it would be better if she left and she let out a sigh and nodded, turning around and walking out quickly. Sigyn smirked as she watched her leave. Suddenly she felt Loki grab her arm and turn her to look at him.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" He harshly whispered. "You can't let anyone know about what happened."

"I have to tell her," She whispered back. "You loved me first, and she has to know that she can't be in the picture."

"No, she doesn't."

"Really? So I'm guessing you haven't told her."

"Of course, I haven't!"

"Exactly. See? You don't really trust her! If you did, you would tell her about what happened those nights between you and I!"

"_No_, I wouldn't because _no one_ is supposed to know. Do you know how much trouble we'd been in if anyone found out?"

"We'd be in less trouble if you married me," Sigyn said.

Loki scoffed. "Marry _you_? Sigyn, the entire reason I ended our courtship was because you were much too jealous of any woman I spoke to!"

"I wasn't jealous!" She exclaimed. "You were in a courtship with me, not them, and I wanted to make sure they were quite clear on that! I was entirely loyal to you, and I still am; I haven't entered another courtship because I know that we need to be together. The only reason I was angry with those girls was because I wanted to make sure that you were loyal to me as I was to you."

"The only reason you did that is because you didn't trust me to be faithful to you, which is another reason I ended the courtship."

"Loki-"

"Sigyn," Loki cut her off. "I'll be marrying Luciana, and no one will be able to stop me."

Sigyn scowled at him. "She doesn't deserve you!"

"You're right," Loki said. "She deserves better. But she has chosen me, and for that I am eternally grateful. Sigyn, just leave. Now."

He turned around and walked away from her, leaving her to call for him to come back. Sigyn watched him as he walked away, no doubt to go see Luciana, and she nearly screamed as she imagined Loki holding Luciana in his arms, the two kissing and cuddling.

Luciana wouldn't get away with stealing her Loki.

She would make sure of that.

* * *

Loki walked into Luciana chambers and saw her sitting on the couch, waiting as patiently as she could for him. She turned to face him and she smiled softly at him.

"Everything alright?" She asked, having obviously calmed down from the ordeal with Sigyn.

"Yes," Loki replied, walking over to her. He sat down on the table across from her and took her hands in his, rubbing her skin with his thumb. "Everything's alright."

Luciana sighed. "This is just what I need; more stress."

"Don't worry, darling. I promise she won't be bothering us again."

"Why is she even here?" She asked. "You were in a courtship once, yes, but why does she feel the need to come back now? When we're in the middle of wedding arrangements."

Loki sighed and brought her hand to his lips. "I don't know. Sigyn just seems to think that because we were intimate, I have to-"

"You were intimate?" She cut him off, her eyebrows furrowed.

He made a small 'o' shape with his mouth as he looked back at her. Once again, Luciana had somehow gotten him to talk about things he really should have, especially not to his future wife, who looked at him expectantly. He let out a sigh. "Yes."

"Oh my god, Loki..." She breathed, pulling her hands away from him.

"She doesn't mean anything to me anymore," He insisted, putting a hand on her knee. "I only have eyes for you."

"I don't question your fidelity," She said, an image of Sigyn popping into her mind as she said it. "What I question is why you allowed your courtship to progress that far, _before _marriage if I might add, and then just suddenly ended it without any fuss."

"There was fuss. I had to have the guards drag her away."

"That's not the point. The point is that she will not stop trying to keep me away from you, and she now has a perfectly good reason too!"

"I wouldn't call an intimate relationship a 'good reason'."

Luciana sighed. "Loki, I'm already under a lot of stress trying to keep Asgard happy. On top of that, I have to take care of Garnock, plan a wedding, keep my sister from ruining everything, and find some way to apologize to Ramsay and his family. The last thing I need is the Goddess of Fidelity breathing down my neck, so I want you to find some way to fix this and make sure I never have to see her again before I _completely_ explode." She was standing by now, and her voice was high-pitched, showing her irritation clearly.

Loki stared up at her, unsure on how to respond. He took her hand and pulled her back down onto the couch. "Calm down, darling heart. I'll sort everything out, I promise."

She sighed. "Thank you. I need this wedding to go as quickly and as smoothly as possible, for I fear we'll have another incident."

* * *

"Dearest Ramsay..." Luciana muttered, writing on a piece of paper.

"Not dearest," Loki said from the couch, his eyes closed and his arms crossed as he laid on it.

"Alright..." She said, waving her hand and ridding the paper of her writing. "Dear Ramsay."

"Not dear."

"Loki, I have to apologize to him."

"Don't use the word 'dear'."

"Well, what am I supposed to write?"

"Just his name."

Luciana rolled her eyes. "Fine," She began to write again.

"Why must you even apologize?" Loki asked. "You haven't done anything wrong."

"I ended an arranged marriage," She replied, her eyes not leaving the paper.

"And?"

"_And _the wedding was supposed to be three days from now," She said, her eyes flickering to him. "They planned so much, and it's all been put to waste now."

Loki opened his eyes and turned his head towards her. "It's been put to waste for good reason."

"I know that," She replied. "But I still have to apologize."

Loki's jaw clenched, but he nodded.

Suddenly, the door to her chambers opened and Garnock walked in, muttering bitterly and carrying a heavy looking sack. He shut the door with his foot and threw the sack onto Loki's stomach as he walked by, causing a grunt to come from the prince. He walked into Luciana's closet, his choice of living space, and slammed the door loudly, still muttering.

Loki and Luciana looked at each other, and then back at the door.

"Garnock?" Luciana asked, standing up from the desk and walking to the door. "Are you alright?"

"No! I just spent the last half-hour being berated by the insane, overly-possessive, blonde version of your sister!"

Luciana frowned at this, and she could feel her temper rising. Sigyn. "What did she say?" She asked, her eyes narrowing towards Loki.

"What _didn't_ she say is the question. She was droning on and on about how we're 'low lifes' and she repeatedly told me about how you were after the throne or how you were planning on poisoning Loki, or some sort of rubbish like that. And to think I was going to give her one of my dead toads!"

"Please don't tell me that's what's in here," Loki said, taking the bag off his chest.

"She thinks I'm going to poison you and take the throne?" Luciana asked, looking at him. He could see the anger in her eyes as she stared at him, and she crossed her arms.

"He's probably exaggerating," Loki assured her.

"I _am_! But she's still out to get Luciana! I can see it in her eyes!" Garnock said, and Luciana's gaze on Loki's hardened.

"I'll fix this," He assured her.

"When? After what happened yesterday, and I don't even want to think about what happened today, it seems like this thing is going to drag on for an awful long time. What's going to happen tomorrow, Loki?"

"Darling heart, I promise I'll talk with her again. Just finish your letter." He told her calmly.

"Forget it, I need a walk." She stated, and she walked out of the room quickly, allowing the door to slam shut.

After she left, Garnock opened the closet door and looked at Loki. "You could have handled that much differently."

"I don't understand why she's angry with me, I haven't done anything." Loki said.

"She's angry with you because you haven't done anything about that blonde yet!"

"It's only been a day."

"I know that! But you have to keep in mind that she's Viveca's sister, she's insane too, just on a lower level. Laddie, you may think you know Luciana, but in all honesty she's a completely foreign subject to you! She's an easily stressed out and anxious person, which results in a high temper. And the only thing you can do with a high temper is to stuff it in a sack, hit it with a stick, and then throw it off a mountain."

Loki stared at the man. "...What?"

Garnock sighed in exasperation. "Oh, for the love of...What you have to do is get rid of what's bothering her! And if you can't do that the least you can do is help her through it."

"That's what I've been doing."

"Really? I don't see you helping with the apology writing." Garnock said, and Loki opened his mouth to retort, but the old man held up a hand. "I make a fair point; don't try to convince the world otherwise."

"Well, what do you suggest I do?"

"Get rid of the blonde. Now. Before things get violent." Garnock said.

Loki sighed. "You're right, I should handle this now."

"Yes, you should. Now hand me that sack, I need it for my bath."

* * *

**Luciana's totally jealous. It's so obvious, right? **

**She really has no reason to be, Loki's marrying _her_. But like Garnock said, she's Viveca's sister, she's insane too...Just on a lower level.  
**

**Reviews are welcomes with open arms and fresh baked cookies!**

**PS. ****Sorry if you guys don't like my version of Sigyn, but in all honesty I really do think she would be a nice girl...As long as you don't get between her and Loki. She's supposed to be forever loyal to her lover (Hence the name 'Goddess of Fidelity') so I imagine she'd be pretty ticked off when someone gets in between that, especially since, as previously stated, she's forever committed to that lover. (AKA Loki)**


	36. Chapter Thirty-Six

**Wow, I'm up to thirty-six chapters and I still have quite a bit more to write. **

**Okay, place your bets, how many chapters do you think this will be when it's finished?**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"For the main course, you have a choice of venison, wild boar, pheasant, or beef," The castle cook said, watching as servants put the four dishes in front of Luciana and Loki.

Luciana eyed the dishes in front of her, each plate holding a slab of meat. This was at the top of her to-do list for that day; she had to choose from the four traditional ceremony meats for the wedding, and still had to choose the rest of the courses, meet with the seamstress, and find some way to not explode. Unfortunately, she found it difficult to make her decision due to the wild boar, still assembled with an apple in its mouth, who seemed to be staring at her coldly even in death.

Loki noticed her discomfort with the dish and chuckled. "Not the boar, then?"

She shook her head, her eyes not leaving the dish. "No thank you."

He waved his hand at a servant and they took away the plate. "Does anything catch your eye?"

"Well, I-"

"Brother, Luciana," Thor's voice boomed, cutting her off. He walked over to the two and smiled. His eyes flickered to the remaining three plates of meat and he smiled larger. "Ah, deciding on the wedding feast, I see."

"Yes, Thor," Loki said, slightly irritated by his brother's entrance. "What do you want?"

"Can't a man see his own brother?" Thor asked, sitting down beside Loki and roughly hitting him on the back.

Loki jerked forward slightly at the impact, and he scowled. "Thor," He began sternly, as if he were talking to a child. "Luciana and I are in the middle of something very important, so I would appreciate it if you-"

"I'll help you, brother," Thor ignored him. He reached over and grabbed a piece of venison, stuffing it into his mouth unattractively. "This is quite good," He said through mouthfuls. "Is this what you'll be choosing?"

"Actually," Loki said, turning to look at Luciana. "Luciana was just about to tell me what see wanted. What were you saying, dear?"

"I was saying that the pheasant looks interesting, mostly because I haven't tried it and I'm not fond of venison."

Thor nearly choked on his food. "You aren't fond of venison?"

"No."

"Loki, you're getting married to a madwoman!" Thor joked.

Luciana chuckled. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a blonde girl walking quickly towards the table, and she frowned. It was Sigyn. "Speaking of madwomen..." She muttered, averting her eyes towards a plate.

Loki looked up and saw Sigyn, and he sighed. "Sigyn," He said, annoyance seeping its way into his tone. "What are you doing here?"

"You can't still be serious about marrying her," Sigyn said, gesturing to Luciana. "You haven't come to your senses by now?"

"Sigyn, leave," Loki said, not wanting to argue.

"No! I'm not going to leave, not until I-"

"Sigyn. Leave. Now. Before I summon the guards." Loki said sternly.

"You wouldn't do that to me again," She scoffed.

"If I have to, I will. You're really trying my patience, Sigyn. It's only been three days, yet I'm at the brink of madness." Loki said.

"So am I," Luciana muttered.

"I would very much appreciate it if you left the palace immediately, before I lose my temper." Loki continued.

Sigyn stared at him in hurt and disbelief, but he didn't falter like she had hoped. She turned her gaze to Luciana, and she sneered. "Watch your back." She turned around and walked out of the room, her arms crossed.

Luciana sighed. "I honestly can't stand her."

"I know. I'm beginning to get to that point too," Loki said, taking her hand. "Don't worry, darling heart, I doubt she'll come again."

She nodded, but seemed unconvinced as she looked from the pheasant to the beef. She took her fork and knife and cut off a piece of the pheasant, popping it into her mouth. "This is good," She said after she swallowed.

"Excellent. Should we have that then?" Loki asked, taking a bite for himself.

"Yes, I think we should." Luciana nodded.

"Yes, of course," The cook said, and he had the servants take away the remaining plates. "Now, for dessert."

* * *

"Did I tell you my family would be coming to the palace tomorrow?" Luciana asked, looking at different swatches of fabric with Frigga.

Loki, who was waiting patiently for the two to finish, groaned loudly. "No."

Frigga rolled her eyes at her son. "What's the matter?"

"The problem is that Viveca is going to try to ruin everything, mark my words," He replied.

"She's probably given up by now, Loki," Luciana said, running her fingers over some fabric. "I haven't gotten an angry letter from her or my parents."

"That doesn't prove anything, she's probably waiting until she gets here."

Frigga sighed. "Oh Loki, you expect the worse, and the worse is what you get." She said as she inspected some fabric. "They'll only be here until after the wedding."

"Which I still haven't planned the date for," Luciana said, embarrassed.

"Tomorrow, the wedding is tomorrow," Loki said. "That way Viveca can leave the moment she arrives."

"Just for that, I think we'll have it mid-winter." Luciana said, narrowing her eyes at him.

"Yes, that sounds lovely," Frigga said, chuckling.

Loki sighed and leaned on the wall. "Are you finished yet?"

"Almost, be patient." Luciana said. She looked over the three remained swatches of fabric that she hadn't eliminated. "That one." She pointed to the third swatch.

"Of course," The seamstress said. "Would you like to go over the wedding gown as well?"

"Actually, no, I'm leaning towards that being a surprise," Luciana replied.

The seamstress nodded and took away the swatches.

"You're finished?" Loki asked hopefully.

"Yes," Luciana said, smiling at him.

"Good," He said, and he walked over to her and took her hand, eagerly dragging her away.

* * *

"I love you," Loki said through kisses, his hands cupping Luciana's face.

"I love you too," She replied, smiling under another kiss.

He brought his lips to her neck and kissed her skin, smiling as she kissed his cheek. He brought his lips back up to her mouth and enveloped her in a deep, passionate kiss. She returned the kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck. He grabbed her arm and pulled away from the kiss, only to place his lips on her wrist. He could smell her bath oil on her skin, and he smiled as he inhaled.

"Oh my god," Luciana suddenly exclaimed, pulling away from Loki's embrace.

The prince frowned. "What?"

"I just remembered I have to go find Garnock," She said turning to leave.

"Oh, Garnock can wait," He said, pulling her back into him. "I, on the other hand, cannot."

He placed his lips on her wrist once more before crashing them onto her mouth, inciting a squeal of surprise to come from her. He chuckled as he deepened the kiss, wrapping his arms around her waist. They stayed that way until the need for air hit them, signaling them to break away from the kiss. He rested his forehead on hers, pecking her lips softly. She smiled and rested her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes as he brought his hand up to stroke her cheek.

"I have to go look for Garnock," She said after awhile, pulling away from him.

"I'll look for him," Loki said, kissing her once more. "You should rest."

She smiled at him. "Thank you."

* * *

**Yeah, I know; not my best work at all. Writers block is here, unfortunately.  
**

**PS. I don't know how a Norse Mythology wedding would go, so don't expect my version of the wedding to be historically, or mythically, accurate.**

**PPS. I've turned on PM (For a limited time) so you guys can ask questions about the story and I can respond. I doubt I'll get any messages, but hey, it's worth a shot! So feel free to ask me anything, but haters be warned, I will write down your pen name and report you to fanfiction if you dare to harass me. IT IS LAW.  
**

**Okay, ramble done. (PS. if you send me a message, please keep in mind that I'm a rambler)**


	37. Chapter Thirty-Seven

**Oh my god guys, I was searching through my computer to clean out files when I found this chapter! I though I had lost it which was part of the reason I had writers block! I thought I wouldn't be able to update for at least a week. **

**Wow, I wonder what other things my computer is hiding from me...**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"I still don't think marrying him is the best idea," Viveca said, watching as Luciana went through her new gowns.

Luciana sighed. "Let it go, Viveca. There's nothing you can do. I _will_ be marrying Loki and that's final."

"But he's lied to father," Viveca informed. "If he's done that, who knows what else he could-"

"That's enough, Viveca," Luciana exclaimed, looking up from her dresses. She stared at Viveca coldly, a frown on her face. She had had enough of Viveca's complaints about Loki, and had finally reached her breaking point. "That's enough."

Viveca was taken aback by the harsh tone in her younger sister's voice, and stayed silent as she watched her go back to her dresses. "He's changed you..." She muttered after some time, forcing Luciana to look up at her.

"I think that's a matter of opinion," She said, staring at her elder sister. "I've chosen my path, Viveca. Why are you so against who I wish to become?"

Viveca didn't answer, only staring at her sister. She shook her head and walked out of the room, slamming the door behind her. She aimlessly walked down the corridor of the castle, fuming with every step.

"But Loki," She heard a female voice whine, and she stopped in her tracks.

"But nothing, Sigyn," She heard Loki say angrily, and her curiosity sparked. "You are really trying my patience. I've asked you a thousand times to leave, and this is my final warning: Leave now, before I resort to summoning the guards."

She spotted Loki turning the corner and walking towards her, a angry looking blonde girl trailing behind him. As he passed her, he sent Viveca a glare to which she returned, and he continued to walk towards Luciana's chambers.

"Loki," The blonde girl cried. "Loki, wait!" She followed him to the door, and was perfectly prepared to follow him in, when he shut the door in her face, leaving her alone with Viveca in the hall. She clenched her fists at her sides and turned around, glaring at the floor.

Viveca watched the girl with interest and cleared her throat to alert her presence. The girl's head darted up towards her and she scowled. Her eyes seemed to burn with hatred as she walked over to Viveca, her blonde locks bouncing with each step.

"You," She spat. "I know exactly who you are!"

"Oh?" Viveca asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes. You're the sister of _Luciana," _She hissed the name. "Who does your family think they are? Thinking they can just go around placing enchantments on people. You ought to be ashamed. I wouldn't even show my face around here if I were you!

Viveca's mouth dropped open slightly as anger rushed through her. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me!"

"I'm sorry, let's try this again," Viveca said, placing her hands in front of her and raising an eyebrow. "Who exactly are you again?"

"I am Sigyn, Goddess of Fidelity," Sigyn stated.

"Right, and what gives you the right to insult my family?"

"You see, unlike you, I am actually a trustworthy citizen of Asgard! Your family's got some nerve going after the royal family, or perhaps the correct word is stupidity."

Viveca held up a finger and opened her mouth to retort, when what Sigyn had said finally clicked into her mind. A wicked smiled reached her face and she put her hand down. "Whatever you say; it is not my place to argue with the Goddess of Fidelity."

Sigyn smirked. "Good. At least you know when to stand down." She walked past her, bumping her shoulder as she did.

Viveca watched her leave and smirked at her back. "This could work."

* * *

Luciana walked to her chambers, in need of a nap after looking at dozens of flowers for the wedding. Suddenly she was taken from behind and swiftly pinned to a wall. She looked up and saw Loki smirking down at her, his hands on both sides on her head.

"I've been looking for you everywhere," He purred. "Where have you been?"

"I told you I had to pick out the flowers with your mother," She said, blushing slightly.

He chuckled. "No matter, you're mine now."

He brought his lips to her jaw and kissed the spot tenderly, moving his hands off the wall and down to her hips. He pulled her closer to him and moved his lips to hers, his kiss passionate. Luciana closed her eyes and returned the kiss, putting her hands just below his shoulders. She pulled away from the kiss when she needed air, but Loki placed his lips back onto hers before she could inhale. She moaned softly in discomfort and pulled away again, placing her fingers on Loki's lips when he went back for another kiss.

"I do need to breathe," She chuckled.

Loki rolled his eyes and took her fingers off his lips. He interlaced his fingers with hers and kissed her temple.

"Oh, Viveca told me she saw you and Sigyn fighting yesterday. Care to tell me about that?" Luciana asked.

Loki sighed as he stared into her eyes. "Sorry."

"Why didn't you tell me?" She asked.

"I thought it would upset you."

"Well it did."

"Darling, I've given her my final warning."

"And?" Luciana asked, letting go of his hand and crossing her arms. "You've given her many warnings, and she hasn't listened to any of them. She insulted Viveca, Loki. What's she going to do next? Lock me in the dungeon?"

"Viveca could be lying to you," He said. "Besides, do you really think Sigyn is going to lock you in the prison?"

"It could happen."

Loki chuckled and shook his head. "Darling, you're being dramatic. I think you're a bit jealous."

"Jealous?" Luciana asked in shock. "You think I'm _jealous_? I, for one, am not jealous, and I'm not being dramatic! I don't trust Sigyn, and maybe yes, I am a bit upset that you're defending her, but that doesn't make me jealous _or_ dramatic!"

"I'm not defending her," Loki protested. "I'm simply stating that maybe Viveca's found another way to mess with your head."

Luciana huffed in annoyance. "You know what? I'm going to go take my nap now. Thanks for being supportive!" She said sarcastically, and she walked away from him quickly, silently fuming.

Loki sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"You know, laddie," He heard a man's voice say from behind him. He jumped and whirled around to see Garnock behind him. "You could have handled that differently."

* * *

Weeks seemed to pass in a blur, and everyone was frantically preparing for the wedding as winter drew closer. Astrid and Frigga made sure every preparation was in order and had been properly executed, whilst Odin in Cyrus served humorously as their helpers, making sure their wives didn't explode from their stress. Luciana was suffering through stress of her own, trying to mentally prepare herself for marriage and making sure everything was in order. Garnock and Thor had even taken part with the wedding plans by giving Loki unwanted lessons on being a husband, despite the latter never being married himself.

The only two people who seemed oddly unproductive were Viveca and Sigyn. The two seemed idle in their attempts to ruin the marriage, in fact Sigyn was nowhere to be seen, and Viveca had refrained from fighting with Loki. One would think this would be a giant weight lifted off of Loki and Luciana's shoulders, but instead it put them more on edge than before.

They were constantly worried that one of them would do something, anything really. A sudden, and angry, visit from Sigyn could occur, or a heated argument between Loki and Viveca could arise. The fear put strain on Loki and Luciana's relationship, most of the time they would be perfectly happy but there would be times where they would bicker about anything.

Luciana thought about this as she wandered through the walls of the castle, silent and alone.

She had just had a fight with Loki about the stupidest of things; the flavour of one of the wedding desserts. Luciana wanted fruit, Loki wanted chocolate. Needless to say, the small disagreement that could have been compromised turned into a fight that brought up their least favourite subjects; Viveca and Sigyn. It consisted of Luciana repeatedly telling him how worried she was about Sigyn, and Loki repeatedly telling her that there was nothing to worry about and that Viveca was probably lying to ruin everything.

One thing led to another, and before she knew it, Luciana had stormed off in fury.

She was honestly sick of hearing Loki complain about Viveca, when she had seemed to give up her attempts of making problems. She realized that she was doing the exact same thing with Sigyn, but she assured herself that it was different. How? She was still trying to figure that out. She felt it in her gut that Sigyn was going to do something, and she didn't follow her instincts often.

She saw Loki's point, Viveca was not the most trustworthy person to have around, but she was still her older sister, and she still cared about her greatly. But her love didn't stop her from angry at Viveca; she was part of the problem. If she hadn't tried to ruin everything with Loki then the fight wouldn't have been as great, they wouldn't constantly be on their guard, and perhaps Loki and her would even get along.

And of course Luciana was mad at Sigyn, she had tried to steal her husband-to-be and insulted her to no end. It was true that Sigyn hadn't been seen, but Luciana was still angry that she showed up in the first place. What was more, Loki seemed to be defending her. Luciana didn't know whether she was jealous or not, if she was, it wasn't a pleasant feeling. It was a horrible one.

"Luciana," She heard a female voice call, and she stopped in her tracks. She turned around and saw Sigyn running towards her, seeming panicked. She frowned and began to walk away. "No, no, no," Sigyn protested. "Wait!"

Luciana stopped and turned around again. "What do you want?"

"I've been looking for you everywhere! Your grandfather, he's gotten himself trapped in the dungeon!" Sigyn explained.

Luciana had a moment of horror before furrowing her brow. "Are you telling me the truth? Or is this some sort of trap-"

"Come on! I think he's hurt himself!" Sigyn exclaimed. She grabbed her arm and pulled her quickly through the corridors. She dragged Luciana throughout the castle before they made it to the doors to the dungeon.

"Where are the guards?" Luciana asked as they went through the unguarded door.

"Helping him! I told you he got himself trapped inside the dungeons!" Sigyn informed her.

The two went deeper and deeper into the dungeon, and Luciana's heart sped up as they went to the empty prison cells, there were no criminals in them yet, so they weren't guarded. She worried about what sort of trouble Garnock had gotten himself into, and how he managed to get trapped in the dungeon. The two raced into a cell and Luciana looked around; there was no sight of Garnock or the guards.

"There's no one..." She began to say before dropping her jaw and whirling around.

Sure enough, Sigyn was standing outside the now locked prison cell with a smirk on her face. "There," She said. "No one will ever find you here."

Luciana mentally slapped herself for being such an idiot and she glared at the blonde. "The guards will."

"How?" Sigyn asked, crossing her arms. "Look around you. There may be guards in the future, but for the time being there's no one here, except for you that is."

Luciana scowled at her. "You'll pay for this."

"I don't think so," Sigyn said, smiling. "No one's going to ever think about looking for you here, not until they need the cell."

Luciana brought up her hand and rested it on the glass separating her and Sigyn. It was supposed to shatter. It was supposed to shatter into a million pieces, and Luciana was supposed to turn in Sigyn for locking her up. But the glass didn't even crack.

"Your magic won't work here," Sigyn informed her. "You're rendered useless in this prison."

"It doesn't matter," Luciana said. "Someone will come looking for me when they realize I'm gone."

Sigyn chuckled. "We'll see."

"You're...You're despicable!" Luciana exclaimed. "How ironic is it that the Goddess of Fidelity, one of the most respectable aspects in the Nine Realms, is one of the vilest beings you'll ever cross paths with? You don't deserve your title."

"And you don't deserve Loki," Sigyn said, walking away. She stopped at the doors. "Oh don't worry. You'll have fun." She walked out of the room and the doors shut behind her, leaving Luciana alone.

Luciana shook her head as she stared at the doors. "I knew I was going to get thrown into prison."

* * *

**Please review!**

**PS. I'm still taking PM questions! Ask me anything! (But don't expect any personal info)**


	38. Chapter Thirty-Eight

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"Luciana's what?" Loki asked in horror, standing up from his chair.

"Missing," Odin replied sadly, sighing. "The guards can't find her anywhere."

"What do you mean they can't find her anywhere?" Loki asked angrily. "Their job is to make sure everyone in the castle is protected!"

"I assure you, Loki, I'm having them look everywhere. But Loki, there are rumours."

"Rumours? Rumours of what?"

"There are rumours that Luciana has run off out of fear of marriage, and if they are true, we may have to cancel the wedding."

Anger coursed through Loki, and he clenched his fists at his sides. "Well, I'm going to look for her myself since your guards are spreading lies instead of doing their job!" Loki said bitterly, and he walked briskly out of the room.

He went everywhere he could possibly think of; her chambers, the library, the garden, he even checked the armoury to see if Thor had whisked her away for a sparring match. But everywhere he went, she wasn't there. At first he was shocked by this, then he was angry, and now he was starting to feel defeated. He had given up on searching specific areas, and instead walked through the corridors, checking every room he passed for any sign of Luciana.

"Loki," He heard a familiar female voice call, and he frowned.

"What, Sigyn?" He asked as she caught up to him.

"I heard about Luciana," She said innocently. "And I thought you might want some company."

"No, Sigyn."

"But you must be lonely."

"You know what I want to know? Why after Luciana suddenly disappears, you decide to return?"

"Because I care about you. I don't want you going through this alone."

"Just because Luciana is gone...not here, doesn't mean my warnings are dismissible," Loki stated, and he picked up his pace in an effort to get away from Sigyn.

She caught up with him easily, matching his pace as he continued to walk. "There have been rumours going around already."

"I've heard," Loki muttered bitterly.

"They say she's run off with a stable boy, whom she met after one of your disagreements," Sigyn said.

Loki stopped in his tracks. A stable boy? They're saying she's run off with a stable boy? She wouldn't, would she? The last time Loki and her had seen each other was last night, and they had gotten into a fight. But he didn't think it would be enough to make her run away with a stable boy, of all people.

"There's no proof that Luciana's run off with anyone," He said, his voice laced with anger.

Sigyn noticed his change in tone. "Well, if you ever want to talk about it, I'm here." She touched his arm comfortably and sent him a smile before turning around and walking away.

Loki stared at her retreating figure for awhile before beginning to walk back down the corridor, an uncertain expression on his face.

* * *

"Hello?" Luciana called for the millionth time at the top of her lungs. "Can anybody hear me?"

She sat leaning on the wall of the cell, her legs brought up to her chest as she screamed for help. She had been in that position for hours now, in fact she had been screaming the entire night, hoping someone would hear her. Needless to say, it wasn't fun being trapped in a prison cell for an entire night, she couldn't even imagine what it was like for prisoners who had to stay there until death.

At that moment she realized that if she didn't try harder to get help, she would surely die in that prison in a matter of days.

"Help, please," She continued to shout. "Hello? Hello? Help! He-" Her cry for help was cut off by her coughing fit. She tried to call for help after her coughing had subsided, but all that came out was a raspy sound that stung her throat. She let out a hoarse groan.

She had lost her voice.

It shouldn't have really come as a shock to her, she had been screaming all night long. What she was upset about was when she needed her voice the most, it had failed her. Realizing there was no use trying to get help anymore; she gave up on screaming and leaned back on the wall, closing her eyes.

She was incredibly angry at Sigyn for what she did to her. She wasn't one for revenge, but she wanted it badly right now. Very, very badly.

She felt something wet roll down her cheek, and she realized she was crying. Why shouldn't she? She was trapped alone in a prison cell, she had lost her voice, and there was a good chance she was going to die. She brought her hand up to wipe away the tear, soon burying her face in her knees and wrapping her arms around them as she cried harder, her sobs raspy and broken.

* * *

Loki had everything he could that day to look for Luciana; he interrogated everyone, searched every room of the castle, and even went around Asgard on his horse to see if anyone had seen her, but no one had.

He laid on the couch of Luciana's chambers, refusing to leave to go to his own room. He had hopes that maybe Luciana would return to her chambers, but as the sun began to set and Asgard was slowly brought into the night, his hopes seemed false.

"Oh cheer up, laddie," Garnock said, searching under Luciana's bed for Valhalla knows what. "I'm sure she'll turn up." Loki didn't respond and Garnock sighed. "Don't tell me you actually think she's run off with a gardener?"

"Stable boy," Loki corrected. "And I don't know what to think."

"Well don't think that," Garnock said, coming out from under the bed and wiping his hands on his robe.

"It's all I heard during dinner."

"That doesn't make it true. I know Luciana better than the lot of Asgard, and she wouldn't just leave you."

"And if she did?" Loki asked, turning his head to look at the man.

Garnock thought about it for a moment. "Then she would have left a note."

Loki sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Do you think she'll come back?"

Garnock shrugged. "Most likely, but then again we don't know what's happened to her," He said casually. "She might not have run away with a stable boy, she could have been kidnapped, killed, seriously maimed. Plenty of things could be happening to her as we speak, and we wouldn't even know it!"

Loki's eyes widened slightly. "You mean torture?"

"Possibly," Garnock looked up at the prince and noticed his worried expression. "She could also be dead."

Loki's mouth opened slightly and he sat up. "I'm going to go looking for her." He said as he quickly got off the couch and raced out the chamber doors.

Garnock looked at the doors for a moment before sighing.

"I probably shouldn't have said that."

* * *

**Please review.**

**PS. I'm still taking PM guys, seriously ask me anything!**


	39. Chapter Thirty-Nine

**Sorry about these short chapters, I've just got a lot to do right now and it's easier for me to write short chapters so I have time to do the other things I have to get done.**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

Luciana didn't know how long she had been trapped, but she was well aware of her groaning stomach and dry throat.

It seemed like hunger and dehydration were taking its toll, for whenever she stood to bang on the prison glass she would get light-headed.

The dryness of her throat and mouth didn't help her voice, which came out in even hoarser rasps then before. The things she would do for water and food at that moment had an endless list, which grew larger and larger by the second.

She estimated she had been in the prison a day, maybe two. But she felt as if she had been locked in there for years, slowly and silently deteriorating.

She wrapped her arms around her legs and pulled them towards her chest, burying her head into her knees. She had long run out of tears to shed, and she feared she had permanently lost her voice from sobbing. She felt herself falling into sleep and she forced her eyes to stay open, fighting back her lack of energy. She moved to stand up and she stumbled as she walked to the glass, the room seeming to move around her.

She lazily banged her fist on the glass, the thuds not as loud as she had hoped. She rested her forehead on the glass before turning her back to it and sliding down to the floor in an exhausted heap.

She thought she was going to die right there and then.

She silently said goodbye to everyone; her mother, her father, Viveca, and Loki. If she would have cried she could have. She didn't even get to marry Loki like she had hoped, and the last time they spoke they had argued, never even saying goodbye.

She leaned her head back on the glass, listening to silence.

* * *

Loki, slightly terrified by Garnock's 'reassurance', had spent all night searching the castle again.

He checked and double-checked every room, unfortunately waking Thor and his parents when he entered theirs. He felt somewhat mad, barging into rooms and giving them a throughout search before leaving quietly. But he was now desperate to find Luciana, and he would stop at nothing to succeed.

He thought about the two assumptions he had made. One, Luciana had indeed run off with a stable boy, or two, she had gotten kidnapped, killed, or seriously injured.

He silently cursed at Sigyn and Garnock for putting these images in his mind as he walked quickly throughout the halls of the palace. But being angry with them wouldn't help his case; it would only distract him from his goal.

He continued to search every corner of the palace, getting angrier and angrier each time he left a room without any clue as to where Luciana might have gone. He walked out to the stables as the sun was beginning to rise, signalling the end of an unproductive night.

"Get my horse prepared," He ordered a stable boy, who had just woken up.

"Of course," The stable boy nodded, and he tiredly began to prepare Loki's steed for riding.

Loki leaned on the door frame to the stables, deep in thought.

Where could he go that he hadn't checked yet? Lothar's castle? No, why would she go there? Lothar was dead and buried, and he didn't even want to know what had happened Deitra. Had she gone home? No, Cyrus had gone home to check for her once her disappearance was announced. He considered banging down the doors of every single citizen of Asgard and searching their homes, in case one had taken their prejudice towards sorcerers a little too far.

It seemed a little far-fetched; an Asgardian commoner holding Luciana prisoner in their own personal dungeon.

_Dungeon._

"The dungeon..." He muttered, looking up in realization. How could he have been so stupid? The dungeon was the one place he didn't check.

Just as the stable boy handed Loki the reins to his horse, the prince dashed away back towards the castle, leaving the stable hand with his hand outstretched and a bewildered look on his face.

* * *

Loki ran down towards the dungeon, praying that Luciana would be there.

If she wasn't, he didn't know what he would do, and if she was there he worried about what state she would be in.

He made it down to where the unguarded empty prison cells were, no criminal or guard in sight.

This was his last hope; she had to be there.

He took in a breath and opened the doors, peering inside the dungeon. Sure enough, on the first cell to the left he saw the figure of Luciana sitting on the floor with her back pressed against the glass.

"Luciana," He breathed in relief, and he walked towards the cell.

Luciana perked up at the sound of her name, though she was unsure if it was a hallucination or not.

She opened her eyes as the door to the cell opened and Loki stood at the doorway. She opened her mouth to speak to him, but she had no voice. Instead, she smiled at him and with her stumbling legs made her way over to him.

He wrapped his arms around her quickly, holding her to him tightly. "Luciana, I was so worried about you." He kissed the top of her head as he felt himself shaking.

She buried her head in his chest, and she certainly would have cried tears of joy if she could have.

They stayed like that for a few moments before Loki finally looked down at her. "Let me guess: Sigyn did this?"

She took her head out of his chest and nodded, a scowl on her face.

"Darling heart, why aren't you speaking?" He asked, cupping her face with his hands.

She put her hand on her throat and opened her mouth, nothing but an inaudible rasp coming out.

"You've lost your voice." He said, and she nodded.

Loki sighed. "Come on then, we'll see to this." He started to pull her away by the hand, when she stumbled as she walked.

He looked at her with concern before placing an arm behind her knees and hoisting her up in his arms to carry her bridal style.

"Now," He said as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Let's get you to the healing room. I'll deal with Sigyn later."

* * *

**Okay, I have a really good reason for nearly allowing Luciana to die...alone...in a prison cell...Don't kill me.  
**

**But anyways, trust me, there's an important point to it.**

**Please review!**


	40. Chapter Forty

**Cheers for forty chapters! Good mother of god, I still got more to write!  
**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"Drink this," The healer handed Luciana a goblet filled with red liquid. "It will soothe your throat."

"How long until she'll be able to speak again?" Loki asked, watching as Luciana brought the goblet to her lips and greedily drank the contents.

"Three to four days at the most, perhaps two to three if she is careful," The healer said, taking the now empty goblet away from Luciana. "In the mean time, make sure she drinks a large amount of water and tea with honey, it will help her recovery. Oh, and try to keep her from saying anything, it might permanently damage her vocal chords."

Loki nodded. "Thank you."

"Of course," The healer said, bowing respectfully. "Shall I fetch some food and water for Lady Luciana as well?"

"Yes, thank you," Loki said, and the healer bowed her head before walking away. Loki sat down beside Luciana and kissed her cheek. "Are you feeling any better?"

She nodded and pecked his lips in response, a smile on her face.

He smiled back at her and took her hand. "I looked everywhere for you, I was so worried when I couldn't find you anywhere." He sighed. "There were rumours going around that you had run off with a stable boy."

Luciana's jaw dropped and her eyes widened slightly as she shook her head. He knew what she was trying to say; she was denying it and demanding to know who told the tale.

He only chuckled and kissed her ear, his lips caressing the shell. "Look how many people we've proved wrong," He whispered.

She nodded and kissed his cheek, moving her hand to grab his.

"Oh, I can't wait to be married to you, darling," He said, resting his forehead on hers. "I can't wait to have children with you." He pecked her lips lovingly. "I want a daughter," He said, looking into her eyes. "I want a daughter who's just as beautiful as you."

Luciana smiled at him and kissed his cheek. "I would've thought you would have wanted a son," She rasped, momentarily forgetting she was not allowed to speak.

"Don't speak," Loki quickly said. "I don't want you to permanently lose your voice." He pulled back from her and brought her hand to his lips. "As for wanting a son," He started. "I wouldn't mind one, but as I've previously stated; I want a daughter, and I already have the perfect name."

Luciana raised her eyebrow for him to continue.

"Aviana," He said, moving a lock of her hair away from her face.

Luciana chuckled and nodded, smiling as Loki leaned over and kissed her cheek.

"Now," He said, pulling away from her and standing up. "You stay here and eat. I'm going to have a little talk with Sigyn." He smiled at her once more before walking briskly out of the room.

He didn't know what he was going to do when he found Sigyn. He would yell, of course, and he would be sure that the whole kingdom would hear him. He rounded a corner and saw a guard standing by a door.

"Have you seen Lady Sigyn?" Loki asked, stopping in front of him.

The guard nodded once. "She is a few corridors down to the left, sir."

"Thank you."

Loki walked faster as he walked through the corridors, getting angrier as he thought about how low Sigyn had sank. She locked Luciana in the dungeon. He was surprised that Sigyn had done something so foul; she had been an overall pleasant person when her jealousy wasn't in her way.

"Sigyn!" He yelled as he saw the blonde standing in the corridor.

She turned around and smiled as she saw Loki, but her grin slowly turned into a frown as she saw the furious look on his face.

"What is it, Loki?" She asked as he stopped in front of her. "What's happened?"

"Don't act like you don't know," He hissed. "I found Luciana."

Sigyn's face went pale. He found her. "What?"

"I found Luciana," Loki repeated. "And I also know you were the one who locked her in the dungeon in the first place."

"I didn't," Sigyn shook her head.

"I know when someone's lying to me, Sigyn," He said. "Don't even try it!"

"But Loki-"

"No. I don't want to hear it," He snapped, and he grabbed her arm. "Come with me."

* * *

"She's lying," Sigyn protested. "I would never do something like that!"

"If that's so, then how do you explain Luciana's imprisonment and the rumours that she had run off with a stable boy?" Odin asked the girl, looking down at her from his throne.

"I wouldn't be surprised if she did all that to make me look bad," She stated loudly. "She's nothing but a-

"Enough," Odin boomed, hitting his staff on the ground to silence her. "I am aware of your disdain towards Luciana, and her engagement to Loki. It saddens me that you, who I have entrusted with the title Goddess of Fidelity, would allow your hatred to go as far as to lead you in your actions."

Sigyn's mouth opened slightly.

"Sigyn, you have committed a vile crime, what is worse, you refuse to acknowledge it," Odin stated, and he stood from his throne. "Upon the circumstances, I have every reason to sentence you to imprisonment. But your father is a friend of mine, and he had requested that your punishment be treated less severely. And so, by my order, you are forbidden to enter the premises of the castle again, and you shall have no contact with Loki or Luciana."

"But, I-"

"You have no right to protest, Sigyn. Your actions are deserving of a much stricter punishment than what I am giving you, I have shown you mercy."

Sigyn looked at him in disbelief, then she darted her head over to Loki, who stood at the steps of his father's throne. "You can't let him do this," She pleaded. "Please, Loki, I love you."

Loki placed his hands behind his back and looked at the ground, choosing not to respond.

"Sigyn," Odin said. "What's done is done." He looked to the guards. "Escort her out."

The guards nodded and led a forlorn Sigyn out of the throne room, her eyes never leaving Loki as she was forced away.

* * *

"That's all the punishment he's giving her?" Luciana rasped angrily, slamming her tea cup on the table.

"Darling, you aren't supposed to speak," Loki reminded her urgently.

"I don't care!" She stated, standing up from the couch. "I rather lose my voice forever then see Sigyn walk free!"

"I wouldn't," He said, reaching to grab her hand. "I don't know what I would do if I couldn't hear your voice."

"Don't even _try_ to use your charm on me," She replied hoarsely, jerking her hand away from Loki's. "If she actually thinks she's going to get away with this _that _easily, she's got another thing coming." She turned around and walked towards the door, fuming.

Loki watched her for a moment before his eyes widened in realization. "No, no, no, no, no, no!" He exclaimed, running after her. "You're supposed to be resting your voice, and screaming at Sigyn won't help!"

"I don't care," Luciana replied, her hand on the doorknob. Suddenly, Loki grabbed her waist and slung her over his shoulder as he walked over to her bed. "Let me go, Loki," She yelled the best she could, hitting his back.

He plopped her down onto the mattress and walked over to the door before she could get up and locked it, confining them both to the room. "I don't like it either, darling heart. But you can't be after Sigyn," He said, turning to her. "You need to rest your voice."

"But, she-"

Loki held up his hand, silencing her. "Rest your voice."

Luciana scowled at him and crossed her arms, sitting at the edge of the bed.

"Good," He said, taking the tea cup off the table and walking over to her. "Finish drinking this," He handed her the cup.

She glared at him as she took the cup from his hands, bringing it up to her lips to drink the liquid.

"Darling heart, you marrying me is probably a worse punishment for Sigyn than whatever you were planning." Loki informed her, sitting on the bed.

She scoffed and rolled her eyes, handing him the now empty tea cup. He sighed and put the tea cup on the bedside table.

"Don't be like that, darling heart," He said, kissing her cheek. "You're much better than that." He moved his lips down to her neck. "I love you." He mumbled. She sighed in defeat as her response and he chuckled as he took his head out of her neck. "This is why I want you to keep your voice."

She rolled her eyes and pecked his lips.

Her silent _'I love you.'_

* * *

**I imagine you all want to kill me for not killing Sigyn. (Yes, I read my comments. Jeez, you guys might hate her more than Viveca) But, come on guys, killing Sigyn is a bit excessive, isn't it? I mean, I know she tried to kill Luciana but she's never allowed to see Loki again because of it. You guys know how much she loves Loki, to her not being able to see him is worse than death.  
**

**Please review!**


	41. Chapter Forty-One

**Disclaimer: All characters involved with Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"These are to be your new chambers," Frigga said, opening the door.

She led Loki and Luciana into a large, circular room had golden walls and flooring. The walls were lined with high windows that were covered by elaborate green draperies, and large, golden bookshelves that held an array of books. There was green sofa and matching armchairs standing in front of the golden fireplace and a round, golden coffee table. Across from where the two stood, there were large doors to the balcony that let in the sunlight that hit a golden desk perfectly.

"Do you like it?" Frigga asked them.

"I do," Loki said, nodded. He looked at Luciana. "What do you think, darling?"

Luciana nodded, still unable to use her voice.

Frigga smiled. "That's good." She pointed to an area cut off from the rest of the room, the entrance covered by green curtains. "There's more to see in there if you'd like."

Loki led Luciana to the curtained off area, pulling back the curtains. In the middle of the room, there was a large, golden bed covered with a rich, green blanket. On the right side of the room, there was a golden vanity with clear mirrors and decorated drawers. On the left side of the room, there were two doors on either side of the two, green curtained, windows that allowed light to stream into the room.

There was another curtained off area between the windows, and Luciana walked towards it. She pulled back the draperies and was greeted with the sight of a pale green and gold furnished nursery. It was a small, golden floored and walled room that had golden shelves stocked with various blankets, toys, and books. Standing in the middle of the room was a small cot; comfortably padded with pale green cushions.

"I see you've found the nursery," Frigga said, walking to stand beside Luciana.

Luciana couldn't contain her blush at the sight of the room and she quickly looked away to face Loki, who seemed just as flustered as her.

Frigga noticed their embarrassment and she smiled. "It will be perfect for my future grandchildren."

Loki cleared his throat. "Mother,"

"Oh hush, Loki," She said to him. "I was merely teasing the both of you."

Luciana smiled at her and hugged her, wishing she was able to say 'thank you.'

Frigga seemed to understand her hug, and returned it. "You're welcome."

* * *

"How is your tea?" Loki asked.

Luciana nodded and smiled as response, still prohibited from using her voice.

"Does it need any more honey?" He asked, holding up a small container.

She grimaced and shook her head.

Honey. She was dreadfully sick of it. The healer had been having her drink it in every cup of tea, and even made her ingest spoonfuls on the side to help her recovery. She was grateful for the relief it brought her to throat, but was tired of eating the sweet substance. Even though she tried to push away the spoons and cups of honey, her parents, and unfortunately Frigga and Loki, would give her looks and she would be forced to ingest the substance under the pressure. Needless to say, her recovery wasn't very much fun.

"Stop badgering her with the honey," Garnock exclaimed, him being the only person on Luciana's side. "It won't do her any good!"

Loki sighed. "The healer said that it's good for her, so she will have it."

"She's not two-hundred, you know." Garnock reminded.

"I know that," Loki said. "I just want to make sure she'll be able to speak again in time for the wedding."

"If you want her to speak give her this," Garnock handed Luciana a teacup filled with a thick, green, lumpy mixture that gave off the smell of fresh grass and dirt.

Luciana and Loki eyed it warily, watching as steam rose up from the cup.

"What exactly is that?" Loki asked.

"A homemade tonic," Garnock said, going back to his small cauldron.

"I see that. But what's it made of?"

"Grass, tree bark, toad intestines, mint, spider legs, and mud."

Luciana nearly dropped the teacup in disgust, and Loki grimaced. She handed him the teacup and wiped her hands on her dress, quickly picking up her now favoured teacup with the honey.

Garnock scoffed and rolled his eyes. "The children today never try anything new."

"We aren't children, Garnock," Loki said.

Garnock looked at him for a moment. "I'm five thousand, one hundred sixty-eight; your father is a child to me." He turned his gaze onto Luciana. "Try it; I promise your voice will be better by tomorrow."

Luciana raised her eyebrow at the man and narrowed her eyes towards the other teacup.

"I promise," He said. "Now drink it up! It tastes worse when it's cold."

She eyed him for a moment before picking the teacup up with her free hand.

"You're not actually going to drink it, are you?" Loki asked, watching her in shock.

She pressed her lips into a thin line and nodded. She eyed the cup and hesitated before letting out a shaky sigh and bringing it to her lips, drinking the liquid. She nearly spit it out as it came into contact with her tongue. It was horrid, the worst thing she ever tasted. The flavour was indescribable, and she regretted ever bringing it to her mouth. She hastily put the empty teacup on the table and drank her tea with honey to wash away whatever Garnock had made.

Garnock smiled. "There. I promise you, go to the healer tomorrow and your voice will be as good as new."

"If she lives that long..." Loki muttered.

* * *

"Alright," The healer said, looking at Luciana. "Try speaking."

"And if she still can't speak?" Loki asked.

"If she still can't speak then we will wait another week and see if there is any improvement. Although, it's only been a week since the incident, and you said she spoke?"

"Once or twice," Loki said, narrowing his eyes towards Luciana.

"Then we'll hope for the best." The healer sighed. "Alright, say something."

"I don't think-" Luciana cut herself off at the sound of her voice, which was heard clean and clear.

"You can speak!" Loki said in shock. "I thought for sure you had damaged your voice beyond repair!"

"As did I," The healer stated. "This is remarkable. Did you have her take any sort of tonic?" She asked Loki.

"No," Loki shook his head.

"Actually I did have something," Luciana said, and she turned her head towards Loki. "Remember? That's the only reason we came here today; to see if Garnock's tonic actually worked."

"It couldn't have," Loki said.

"Well then how do you explain my voice being as if it were never damaged?" Luciana asked.

"It was probably all the tea and honey I had you drink."

"Still, my voice wouldn't be as clear as it is now. Perhaps Garnock knew what he was doing."

"Of course I did!" Garnock exclaimed, suddenly popping up from behind a couch, causing the other three to jump. "I'm Garnock the Great!" He exclaimed. "Why do you think I made you drink that? For my own personal amusement?"

Luciana and Loki looked at each other in silence and Garnock rolled his eyes.

"By the gods," He muttered, slowly going back behind the couch. "You'd think that I was mad."

* * *

**Okay, so sorry for this chapter. I know it's boring and short, but I have a good reason for writing it...You guys just don't get to know what that is yet.  
**

**Reviews!**

**PS. Does anyone else notice that**** when you get too involved with your own writing that you miss out on what other people are working on? Yeah, cause I'm following like at least ten stories and I'm only keeping up with like three. Whoops. I gotta manage my time better.  
**


	42. Chapter Forty-Two

**I was up all night perfecting this chapter, so I hope you guys like it.**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"Luciana, wake up," Astrid said, shaking her sleeping daughter lightly. "You have a big day today."

Luciana groaned and tiredly batted her mother's hand away. "What?" She mumbled.

Astrid rolled her eyes. "Your wedding."

Luciana's head shot out of her pillow. "That's today?"

Indeed it was. The few weeks since Luciana's voice returned had passed quickly, and it was now the day of the wedding. The winter day seemed perfect for the event, a light snow had begun to fall, and although it was odd weather for Asgard, even in the winter, it was warmly welcomed for the special occasion. Last minute preparations were being made as the weather outside the palace continued, and everyone seemed to be in a frenzy to make sure _everything _was in order.

"Yes," Astrid said, eying her daughter. "Did you forget?"

"No, of course I didn't," Luciana said. "My nervousness kept me up all night."

Astrid smiled. "Don't be nervous, you're marrying the man you love." She gently pulled the covers off of Luciana. "I already drew you a bath."

Luciana nodded and kissed her mother's cheek as she got out of the bed. She walked into the wash chambers, the aroma of her favourite bath oil and soap pleasantly reaching her nose. She walked over to the tub, stripping herself of her nightgown and robe as she went, and sat on the edge. She dipped her hand in the warm water, making circles with her fingers. She sighed and lowered herself into the water, closing her eyes as she settled.

It would be an understatement to say she was nervous, she was so anxious that she was slightly shaking. She was still processing the fact that today, in just a few hours; she'd be married to Loki Odinson. She was, of course, ecstatic but her excitement didn't stop the nervous feeling in the pit of her stomach. Luciana silently scolded herself for being anxious. Her mother was right; she was simply marrying the man she loved, there was no need to be nervous.

Oh, who was she kidding?

There was every reason to be nervous; she was marrying the _prince _of Asgard. She'd be marrying into the royal family and everything she was would be changed.  
What was more; she was marrying Loki in front of most of the people of Asgard, who didn't take very kindly to her. She realized that worrying about what was inevitable wasn't going to help her much, if anything it would make her more stressed out.

She sighed and inhaled, holding in her breath as she dipped her head underwater, drowning out the nerve-wracking thoughts. After a moment, she brought her head up from under the water and took in a deep breath, shaking her head slightly. She lathered herself with the soap, set on trying to distract herself from her wedding day jitters. She washed every inch of herself with the oils and soaps, the scent filling her nostrils as she bathed.

"Luciana," She heard Astrid say from outside the door. "Are you finished yet? Frigga is here with the maids."

Luciana looked at the water and sighed. "Just a minute," She called, stepping out of the tub. She conjured up a towel and quickly wiped herself dry, and she wrung the water out of her hair, allowing it to splatter onto the floor. She picked up her robe and wrapped it around her body. She walked over to the door and opened it, stepping out of the room. "I'm finished."

"Good," Frigga said, smiling at her. She motioned for her to sit down at her vanity with a wave of her hand. "Come along, we'll get you prepared."

As Luciana sat down at her vanity, Astrid placed a small plate of fruit in front of her. "So you don't get too hungry." She said.

Luciana smiled her thanks and picked up a slice of apple, biting into it.

The maids began to dry the rest of Luciana's hair, carefully wringing out what was left of the water into a towel. They brushed her long hair, brushing half of it to one side and letting it cascade in soft waves down her shoulder. Luciana couldn't help but feel a bit uncomfortable having other people do her hair, she usually did that herself unless her mother was persistent. But nevertheless, she sat still and quiet as the maids finished their work.

There was a knocking at the door as the maids finished, and everyone looked towards it.

"Yes, come in," Frigga called.

Luciana recognized the face of the seamstress as she walked in. "Lady Luciana's dress is ready." She said.

"Oh, good," Frigga said, motioning with her hand. "Bring it in."

The seamstress turned around and motioned towards the door with her hand. Two girls, no doubt the seamstress' apprentices, came in carrying the wedding gown. Luciana's mouth dropped as the two held up the dress for her to see. It was gold all over with intricate detailing from top to bottom, which was long and dragged across the floor elegantly. Apart from its ravishing details, the modesty of the dress was greatly to her liking; her arms and neck being the only skin visible.

"It's beautiful," She breathed, standing up from the vanity. She walked over to the dress and gently traced one of the details with her hand. She turned to the seamstress and smiled at her. "Thank you, thank you so much."

The seamstress nodded once. "Would you like help putting it on Lady Luciana, my queen?" She asked Frigga.

"Yes, thank you," She replied.

The four maids and seamstress helped Luciana into the dress, making sure not to damage the gown in the process. Once it was secure on her body, Luciana was given the golden shoes that matched the dress perfectly. She spun slowly around in disbelief as she stared at her attire, which was grander than anything she had ever seen before.

"Don't think you're done yet," Astrid said, smiling and holding a box. She placed the box on the vanity and waved Luciana over to her. "I have a present for you."

Luciana's eyebrows furrowed as she walked over to her mother. Astrid watched her daughter for a moment before carefully opening the box, allowing the contents to be seen. Luciana gasped in amazement at what she saw. Inside, sitting perfectly in the middle of the box, were two finely crafted bracelets made of gold and sapphires, the jewels shimmering as the light hit them.

"Oh, mother," Luciana breathed, staring at the pieces in wonder.

"I had two sets made, one for you and one your sister," Astrid explained. "And I promised myself I wouldn't give them to until the day of your wedding, so that you could wear them when you got married."

"Mother," Luciana said, smiling at her. She wrapped her arms around her. "Thank you."

Astrid smiled and returned the hug, tears brimming in her eyes.

"You're welcome."

* * *

"There's no need to be nervous, brother," Thor said. "This is highly unlike you."

"When have I ever been myself since I met Luciana, Thor?" Loki asked, sounding somewhat bitter. He sighed. "And I'm not nervous."

"Of course you are," Thor said, smiling widely. "Look at you!"

Loki raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong with me?"

"Your cape is on backwards."

Loki looked behind him and groaned. Sure enough, his heavy green cape was on backwards. "_Fine_, Thor," He said bitterly, ripping off his cape and attempting to put it on properly. "I'm a bit nervous. Are you happy now?"

Thor chuckled. "There is no need for agitation, brother, today is a happy day! Today you are to be married to Luciana!"

Loki smiled lightly at Luciana's name, but he stayed silent.

"Loki!" The voice of Garnock called from outside the door. "There's some guard here telling me that you and Thor have to be in the throne room now. I don't know if he's telling the truth! Should I smite him? And while I'm at it, can I have a go at your brother, as well? He's a bit too full of himself for my taste!"

Thor frowned at this and Loki chuckled, silently agreeing with the mad, old man.

* * *

"You look beautiful, Luciana," Frigga complimented the girl.

"She's more than beautiful," Astrid said, fighting back tears of joy. "She's...she's..."

"Perfect?" Cyrus offered, looking at his wife.

Astrid nodded and leaned into her husband.

"Perhaps we should all go to the throne room," Frigga suggested, rubbing Astrid's back comfortably.

"You go ahead," Viveca said. "I want to have a moment alone with Luciana."

The three nodded and left the room, Cyrus kissing Luciana's cheek as he left. As the doors shut behind them, Viveca turned to look at her younger sister, and she stared at her. The two sisters stood there in silence for a long moment before Viveca finally sighed.

"You look lovely," She said.

"Thank you," Luciana said.

"You know why I wanted a moment alone with you, don't you?"

"To talk me out of marrying Loki last minute?"

Viveca sighed. "Yes, but not exactly."

Luciana shook her head. "Viveca, there's no stopping it. I will marry Loki today and you honestly can't stop me."

"I've given up in trying to stop you...But I have to tell you the truth...It was I who had Sigyn lock you away in that prison cell."

Luciana's stomach dropped. "You _what_?"

"I know. I'm so sorry, Luciana."

"You-You...I could've died down there!"

"I know! But I never meant for you to stay down there forever! I was going to come and fetch the night Loki found you, and I was going to take you away from here."

"Viveca," Luciana stated, seething with anger. "Out of all the things you've done, this has to be the _lowest_ and most foul of them all!"

"I did it for a reason. I had-"

"You know what? _No_! I'm not listening to this, Viveca! How could you? How did you even convince Sigyn to do this?"

Viveca sighed and raised her hands, subtle green sparks coming from her fingers. "It's amazing what magic can make someone do. She doesn't even remember me casting the obedience spell on her."

"That explains why you aren't locked up!" Luciana hissed. "You abused your magical ability, Viveca!"

"Oh please, don't tell me you didn't want to see Sigyn gone!"

"I did want her gone! But she was accused of a crime that she probably wouldn't have done if you hadn't messed around with her head! How could you?"

"I had to get you out of the castle so I could warn you!"

"Warn me? Warn me about what?"

"About Loki," Viveca sighed. "I have to warn you about Loki. You know I don't trust him, Luciana, I never have. From the minute he played that trick and then later came to our door, I knew that he was going to try for your heart, and I knew he'd do whatever it took to get it. He _is_ a liar, Luciana, don't deny it. He's cunning, he's sly, he's all too shady for my liking."

"Why are you so against Loki, Viveca? One small prank isn't enough to make someone hate a man where he stands." Luciana said.

Viveca sighed, looking at the ground. "Do you remember Xanthus?"

Luciana's eyebrows furrowed. "What does father's former apprentice have to do with any of this?"

"Do you remember where he went? When father threw him out of training?"

"Yes, Nifelheim. Why?"

"He...He promised that after he got there he would find a way to come back for me, and we would get married."

Luciana's jaw dropped. "W-What? But-But Viveca, he broke into father's forbidden room and stole some of the most powerful relics father had! He was planning to take over Asgard and that's why father sent him to Nifelhiem! You couldn't have a had a courtship!"

"We kept it a secret! I was so desperately in love with him a disregarded his sly, cunning demeanor, and I refused to believe that he was anything but good! I was doing exactly what you're doing right now; making a terrible mistake!" Viveca exclaimed. Luciana then noticed how broke Viveca looked, as if she were a mirror that someone had smashed repeatedly. Viveca was the very image of a broken heart.

"But Loki's different than Xanthus; he isn't corrupt!" Luciana stated, trying her best to ignore Viveca's now watery eyes. Viveca never cried; until now that is.

"Isn't he? Think about it, Luciana, he's cunning, he's sly, he's unpredictable. I suppose that's why he's the God of Mischief," Viveca said, her voice shaking. "Because that's what he craves; mischief, trouble...chaos. I didn't want you to be apart of that, I still don't, because I fear that in the end, you'll get your heart broken. He is so dishonest, Luciana, I don't know what you see in him; I honestly can't see why his many names don't faze you."

Viveca watched Luciana's unreadable expression as she continued.

"The Lie-Smith, that's what they call him, isn't it? Yes, the Sly One; both fitting titles for a man such as him. I'll admit it frightened me, how easily he was able to fall for you, and you him, and perhaps I went about it the wrong way. Perhaps I ended up becoming somewhat like him in my quest to keep you apart. But what frightens me the most is that you, who is so very intelligent and wise, fell for someone whose path leads to so much darkness."

She sighed shakily before continuing. "He used his silver tongue on you, Luciana; he made you so unlike yourself. I always thought you'd be wary of men like him, I thought you would've known that it was risky to get involved with them. That's who you were, before you met him anyway. Somehow he was able to pull you into the dangerous game he's so used to playing."

"Luciana, the only reason I tried so hard to get you away from him was because I don't want you to end up with a broken heart like I did. I don't want you to be a pawn in his game of unpredictability, I don't want to see you hurt by him after you've entrusted him with your heart, only to have him tear it apart. I'm not saying that you shouldn't marry him; I'm not saying that anymore. What I'm saying is that you should consider the future, and what will come with it."

Viveca sighed once more, wiping away a tear that had escaped her eye. "He's filled with envy and hidden rage, Luciana; I can see it in his eyes. With envy comes lust, with lust comes madness. He'll do whatever it takes to get what he wants, no matter how ghastly the task. Do you really want to be apart of what he could resort to? To what he could become? Outside there's a prince, inside, there's a monster. A monster that cannot be tamed."

"Xanthus said he loved me, he said he would come back for me. But instead he broke my heart, he _never_ came back for me. We met the exact same way you and Loki met, through his mischief, and I did the exact same thing you did; I fell in love with him. I don't want you to marry someone who is only going to break your heart, Luciana. He may be committing to you know, but you have no idea what might happen later."

Luciana stared at Viveca, stunned into silence after the speech.

"I-I don't know what to say," She admitted, shaking her head.

"You don't have to say anything," Viveca shook her head.

"So the only reason you did all of this is because you didn't want me to end up like you? With a broken heart?"

"Yes. Luciana, I'm sorry but I understand if you never forgive me. But I beg of you not to tell anyone about any of this. Don't tell anyone about Sigyn, about Xanthus, about anything. Just please don't!"

Luciana looked at her sister with uncertainty. "Why should I?"

"Because I'll never try to tear you and Loki apart ever again. I swear!"

Luciana stared at Viveca, her mind racing. "You swear?"

Viveca swallowed. "On my life."

* * *

**Yeah, Viveca was behind the whole Sigyn locking Luciana away thing. Why? Well, because I never imagined Sigyn actually sinking down to that level.  
**

**Bet a lot of you are surprised, huh?**

**Please feel free to express your hatred or views on Viveca in a review, but be appropriate about it. But seriously please tell me what you think of Viveca now, I really want to know how you feel about her. (Though, I've got a good theory on about 80% of you)  
**

**PS. I'm still taking PM questions in case any of you forgot! Ask me something! Heck, even start a conversation with me! I don't mind! (Note: Any spam or hate mail will be reported)**


	43. Chapter Forty-Three

**As I've stated before, don't expect this wedding to be mythically or historically accurate. This is purely my imagination and is in no way the official way to have a royal Asgardian wedding...I don't even think there _is _an official way to have a royal Asgardian wedding.**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

The doors to the throne room opened, and Luciana stared through them.

On either sides of the room, there were crowds of the Asgardian people, all silent and staring at her. She averted her eyes from them and looked directly across from her. Her family was standing on one side of the stairs to Odin's throne, Loki's family standing on the other. Odin was standing at his throne with Loki, the latter vaguely looking the way she felt.

By definition, the meaning of bravery is the ability to face things like fear, danger, or uncertainty; it is being able to conquer your fears and have the courage to take risks. There are brave people in the world, their levels of courage ranging vastly. But bravery can only get a person so far in life, and there are moments when it can betray you and flee from your body, leaving you frozen in place. That moment, for Luciana, was now.

A voice in her mind barked at her to move, and she swallowed, slowly taking her steps towards Odin's throne. She locked eyes with Loki, his gaze giving her comfort as her heart pounded wildly in her chest. He was clad in his royal armour, as he had been the day he proposed. There was a look of awe and shock on his face as he stared at her, yet it gave her comfort. Luciana felt something wet run down her cheek, and she nearly stopped in her tracks.

Was she crying? If she was, was it out of nervousness? Happiness? Love?

She couldn't bring her hand up to wipe the tear away as she finally, after what seemed like an eternity, reached the stairs to the throne. Her eyes were still locked on Loki's as she climbed the stairs, silently praying she wouldn't trip. Loki outstretched his hand towards her as she made it up the final step, and she took it, managing to grin nervously at him.

"Darling heart," Was all he was able to breathe quietly in her ear as he led her closer to Odin.

Luciana smiled at him again as they stopped in front of Odin. Her eyes wandered up to the Allfather, who looked solemn as he stared at her and Loki. He banged his staff on the ground, bringing everyone's attention to him. Loki and Luciana knelt in front of him, their right arms over their hearts as a sign of respect. There was a long moment of silence before Odin cleared his throat.

"People of Asgard," His voice boomed around the large room. "On this day, we are to witness the marriage of Loki Odinson and Luciana Cyrusdottir. This is not a matter to be taken lightly, for today they have made the choice and the promise to be bound eternally to one another by the marital laws of Asgard."

He paused. "Loki Odinson," Odin said, his eyes flickering from Loki to Luciana. "Luciana Cyrusdottir. Please rise."

The two rose from their positions.

A man carrying a pillow began to walk over to them. He handed the pillow to Odin, who held it with his free hand, holding the pillow towards them. On it were two small, golden daggers that shimmered in the light. "Take a dagger, and cut the palm of your hand." He said.

Luciana and Loki each took a dagger. Luciana inspected it for a moment before lifting her hand up and running the sharp blade across her palm. She expected it to experience a bit of pain, no matter how small. But instead she felt nothing; it was almost as if she were cutting herself with thin air. She and Loki placed their daggers back on the pillow, blood seeping out of the thin cuts on their hands.

"Bring your hands together," Odin said, gesturing to the hands Loki and Luciana cut.

They both raised their hands and placed them together, their fingers lining up perfectly. Luciana felt Loki's surprisingly cool blood mix in with her own, and she stared at their hands. Her fingers twitched, wanting to interlace with Loki's by habit, but she kept her hand still.

"By allowing your blood to combine," Odin said, wrapping a golden chain around their wrists. "You create a bond of eternal love and commitment that can never be broken by man. By doing this, you promise to be forever faithful and forever loving to each other." He looked at Loki. "Loki Odinson, do you swear to have an undying loyalty and an everlasting love for Luciana Cyrusdottir?"

Loki looked at Luciana and smiled lightly. "I swear."

"And do you, Luciana Cyrusdottir, swear to have an undying loyalty and an everlasting love for Loki Odinson?"

Luciana looked at Loki, and let out a small sigh. She swallowed as a single tear fell from her eye, and despite it, she smiled. "I swear."

As soon as the words left her mouth, the chain around their wrists began to glow a bright light, and it began to disappear into their skin. Luciana could feel hers and Loki's now mixed blood receding back into the cuts on their hands, as opposed to continuing to drip down their palms. Soon the chain had completely vanished and the glow faded away.

"From this day forth," Odin stated. "I, Odin Allfather, proclaim you husband and wife. Loki Odinson, you may kiss your bride."

Loki removed his hand from Luciana's and cupped her face. She could feel his cold breath for a moment before his lips rested on hers. The crowd around them erupted into loud cheers and claps. The two newlyweds smiled under their kiss, and Loki pulled away from her, resting his forehead on hers. He wiped away her tear with his thumb and pecked her lips.

They were married, after all this time they were finally married. They had only met two seasons ago, yet their time together made it seem like they had been in love for centuries. It would seem impossible; how fast and how deeply they had fallen in love. But for them, it was more than enough time, it was perfect. They were husband and wife until death due them part, and nothing was to change that.

Frigga and Astrid looked on at their children, clapping with tears in their eyes and smiles on their faces. Cyrus and Odin had smiles on their faces as well, but fought every urge to cry at the happy scene. Thor and Garnock clapped loudly for the two, big, goofy smiles on their faces. And, last but not least, Viveca stood there clapping with the smallest of smiles on her face. Like her mother and Frigga, she was crying, except not out of happiness, but for defeat and worry.

"My beautiful wife..." Loki said, seeming unfazed by the loud crowed surrounding them.

Luciana smiled and placed her hand on his. "My wonderful husband."

* * *

"A toast," Thor boomed, standing up from his place at the table, an ale filled goblet in his hand. "To the new husband and wife." He smiled at Loki and Luciana. "Congratulations to the both of you."

The table filled with words of congratulations and Loki and Luciana thanked everyone.

Loki took a sip of his wine and turned to Luciana. "Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight, darling heart?" He asked, his voice at a whisper.

She chuckled. "Seven times."

"That's still not enough," He stated, placing his wine glass down and taking her hand. He stood up with her and led her away from the table. "I wonder how lovely you are when you dance."

She laughed as he pulled her into him, placing on hand on her waist and holding her hand with the other. She put a hand on his shoulder and grasped his hand firmly. They began to sway to the music, looking lovingly into each other's eyes.

"You're exquisite, darling," Loki said, raising his hand above her head and twirling her around. "You're divine. Darling heart, I could think of a thousand words to describe you and none of them would do you justice."

Luciana smiled at him and kissed him gently. "It's those kinds of things that make me fall in love with you even more."

"Well, I'm glad. I wouldn't want to lose you, darling heart."

"You'll never lose me, Loki, I'm your wife and you're my husband. I'm not about to let anything change that."

Loki smiled and rested his forehead on hers. "I love you, Luciana."

"I love you too, Loki."

He kissed her lightly before twirling her around in a circle once more, chuckling along with her as he pulled her back into him. He leaned down towards her ear and kissed it. "I think we've been down here long enough," He whispered. "Wouldn't you agree, darling heart?"

She rolled her eyes and kissed his cheek in response.

He chuckled. "That's what I thought," He said seductively, kissing her cheek. "Come now, let's go to our room. No one will miss us."

* * *

**They're finally married! The stories not over yet, though. Seriously, I have some moments I'm going to put in before I get into the Thor movie storyline. **

**And as you guys probably know, Thor: The Dark World is coming out soon. I'm hoping to have this story done by the time it comes out and I get to see it, and then I'll start writing the sequel to Hardest of Hearts. So yeah, that will be fun!  
**

**Please review!**


	44. Chapter Forty-Four

**This chapter is purely fluff. You've been warned, now, go eat your cookies and continue reading.  
**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"Take care of her, Loki," Cyrus said, hugging Luciana. "She's yours now."

"I will, sir," Loki said, nodding.

"Good," Cyrus nodded back at him. He looked down at Luciana. "I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too, father," She said, pulling away from him with a sad smile. She looked to her mother, who had tears in her eyes, and she went over to hug the woman. "Oh, mother, don't cry! You're going to make me cry."

"They're happy tears, dear," Astrid assured. "Though I am a bit sad that you won't be at home anymore."

"Mother, I'll visit as much as I can," Luciana said, pulling away from her mother and smiling at her.

"You better," Astrid said. She kissed her daughter's cheek once before clearing her throat. "Now, say goodbye to your sister."

Luciana turned to Viveca, who extended her arms for a hug. "Keep your eye on him, Luciana," She whispered as she wrapped her arms around her newlywed sister, her eyes flickering to Loki. "I still don't trust him."

Luciana frowned. "I'll miss you." She said, ignoring Viveca's comment.

"Alright, well, we best be off," Cyrus said as he watched his two daughters pull away from their embrace.

"Yes, it's freezing out here," Astrid said, pulling her cloak closer around her as she looked at the blanket of snow surrounding them. "Come along, father!" She called to Garnock, who was playing in a nearby snow bank. "We're leaving now!"

"But there's so much snow here!" He protested. "You can't honestly expect me to leave it all behind, can you?"

Cyrus sighed at his father-in-law. "There will be more snow back at home, now come along. If it starts snowing again I don't want to be caught in a storm."

Garnock grumbled as he walked over to the three horses, getting on the back of Viveca's behind her. As Astrid climbed on the back of her horse she turned around and looked at Luciana.

"I love you," She said.

Luciana smiled. "I love you too."

With that the three horses began to walk out of the courtyard, leaving Luciana and Loki alone in the snow. Luciana pulled her cloak tighter around her as she watched the horses disappear. She sighed as a cold wind blew around her, and she tightened the cloak even more around her body.

"Are you alright?" Loki asked, putting a hand on her back.

Luciana nodded. "It's just that I'll miss them. That and I am getting cold out here."

"It's not that cold."

"How can you say that? It's freezing!"

Loki smiled and pulled her into him, kissing her on the forehead. "Let's go inside then. I'll have the servants fetch you some warm tea."

* * *

"You really want to go riding in this weather?" Luciana asked, wrapping her cloak tighter around her with one hand as Loki held her other.

"Of course," Loki said as though it were obvious. "Oh come now, darling heart, it's not that cold."

"It's not that cold? It snowed another foot last night, Loki. You might be able to handle this weather, but I for one am in a dress and cannot!"

Loki chuckled as he led her into the stables. "Prepare our horses," He said to the stable hand, who nodded and walked off.

"I still think going riding in eight feet of snow is a bad idea, not to mention a dangerous one." Luciana said.

"How do you know I don't have something planned?" Loki asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

"Where are we going?"

"I'm afraid I can't tell you that."

"You never tell me where we're going! Can't you at least give me a hint?"

"It's in Asgard."

Luciana scoffed and rolled her eyes.

"Relax, darling heart," Loki said, taking the reins of both the horses from the stable boy. "Besides, if we leave we'll have a chance at being alone."

"Well, I'm just saying that it's a bit cold to be going out riding," Luciana said, taking Calypso's reins from him and leading her horse out of the stable. "And if we get stuck in the snow then who knows what will-" She was cut off by something cold hitting her back. She whirled around and saw Loki smirking at her with a snowball in his hand. He threw it up in the air once before catching it and tossing at it her, hitting her in the stomach.

"Hey!" She protested, wiping the snow off. "I'm already cold enough."

He only continued to smirk at her with a mischievous glint in his eyes. Within an instant, the snow on the ground was fashioned into a ball and it shot into his hand. She knew what he was planning to do with it and she covered herself lamely with her arms, the snowball hitting her elbow. She heard him chuckle and she looked from behind her arms to find him with one snowball in each hand.

"Wait," She said slowly, backing up with her hands raised in defense. "Didn't Frigga ever tell you not to hit a woman? Even with snowballs?"

"I'll take my chances," He said, shrugging. He raised his hand and tossed a snowball at her, and she covered herself with her hands

She quickly pulled her hood over her head and jumped onto Calypso's back, kicking her sides and sending her off at a run.

"Oh no," Loki called after her. "You're not going anywhere." He quickly mounted his own horse and started after his wife and her horse.

He chuckled as he ran after them, Luciana giving off the illusion she was floating in midair due to Calypso's snow white figure, which blended easily with the snow on the ground. In fact, the only way one would be able to tell Luciana was riding a horse was the snow that flew around her as Calypso's hooves attacked the ground. He managed to throw a snowball at Luciana's back, and he laughed at her cry of surprise as the two kept on riding.

He ran after her until they reached a field filled with snow forts, no doubt made by the children who hardly ever got to experience the cold substance. Loki watched Luciana as she hopped off her horse and ran towards one of the snow forts, her black cloak disappearing as she ducked under the snow. He chuckled and shook his head as he dismounted his horse. He walked over to the fort with long strides and looked into it.

"Darling heart, hiding isn't going to-" He cut himself off when he realized that Luciana wasn't there. His face twisted in confusion and he stood upright. "Luciana?" He called, looking around the snow covered field. "Luci-" He was cut off by something hitting his back.

He smirked, conjuring a snowball in his hand and he began to turn around. "Oh, darling, I don't think it's wise to go to war with-" He was cut off by a snowball hitting him square in the face. He quickly spit out the snow that had gotten into his mouth and wiped his face, cursing under his breath. He heard giggles coming from behind a nearby snow fort and he froze. That wasn't Luciana's laughter.

His eyebrows furrowed and he walked towards the fort, only to be greeted by another snow ball hitting him in the face.

"Alright," He said, starting to get a bit annoyed. "Who-"

"Attack!" A high-pitched voice called, interrupting him.

Suddenly dozens of snowballs were thrown at Loki, and he covered himself with his arms as he ducked under the snow fort Luciana had disappeared in. He carefully peered out from the fort and saw four boys in cloaks quickly making more snowballs and throwing them in his direction. He smirked and pulled his hood over his head, the boys hadn't seen his face yet; he could have fun with this.

He stood up straight from his crouching position, and walked towards the boys, making sure his hood covered his face.

"Get him!" The tallest boy called holding a snowball in the air, prepared to toss it at Loki.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Loki said, putting his hands up. "You have no idea what the consequences might be."

"Consequences?" A stocky boy with red hair snorted. "What sort of consequences?"

"Well," Loki began, an elaborate, and completely untrue, story already prepared in his mind.

"Oh don't listen to him," A blonde boy said. "He's trying to distract us!"

"On the contrary," Loki said. "There's no need to distract you when victory is already in my grasp."

A short boy with sandy brown hair snorted. "Let's get him."

Loki was perfectly prepared to hurl and endless amount of snowballs at the boys when he held a hand grab the back of his cloak and roughly pull him into a fort. He looked at his captor with a confused look on his face and saw Luciana staring at him.

"You're not serious." She stated, amusement evident in her voice.

"What do you mean?"

"I _mean_," Luciana said. Loki noticed at that moment how much she looked like Garnock and Astrid, and he couldn't help but chuckle. She looked at him oddly for a moment before continuing. "You're not really going to have a snowball fight with these boys, are you?"

"What if I am?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Then for the sake of the children, I hope you win." She said.

"Oh, I'll win, darling heart," He said, a mischievous smirk on his face as he conjured up snowballs. "Trust me."

He turned to look back at the boys, ready to pelt them with the snowballs, but was hit in the face once again with one of their snowballs, followed by the boy's loud laughter.

"Oh yes, you're definitely winning," Luciana said sarcastically.

"This is why I want a daughter," Loki said, wiping the snow from his face.

She rolled her eyes as he picked up a snowball, tossed it in the air once, smirked at her, then threw it towards the boys, hitting the tallest one on the shoulder. War broke loose, and Luciana watched in extreme amusement as Loki thoroughly enjoyed every minute of getting revenge for those snowballs that so roughly came flying at his face.

"Okay, Loki," She said, realizing he was probably having _too much_ fun. "I think you should stop now." As she finished her sentence, a snowball hit the side of her head, and she clamped her eyes shut in annoyance.

"Oi! I got the girl!" The sandy brown-haired boy exclaimed.

"Never mind," Luciana said irritably to Loki, who held back his laughter. "Keep going."

He sent her a smirk before waving his hand towards the four boys. Suddenly huge piles of snow rose from the ground and flew towards the boys, quickly layering them with snow.

"Run!" The tallest yelled to his companions, and the four ran from the field screaming as the snow continued to be hurled at them.

Loki laughed as they ran out of the field. "Oh, those boys remind me too much of Thor."

"Which is probably why you had too much fun torturing them," Luciana said, dusting the bits of snow off her cloak.

He smirked at her. "I told you I'd win."

"Yes, and?"

"And I believe I deserve a victory kiss."

She chuckled and leaned towards him, placing her lips on his gently. "Happy?" She asked as she pulled away.

"Not just yet," He said, a suggestive smirk on his face.

Luciana hardly had the time to furrow her eyebrows before found herself under Loki, who kissed her neck greedily. "Loki, not out here." She whined, blushing furiously.

He ignored her as he continued to kiss her neck, his hands idly playing with the hem of her cloak.

Luciana sighed as she picked a handful of snow in her hand. "I'm sorry for this," She said, and within seconds she had shoved the snow into Loki's face, breaking him away from her neck.

"How many times do I have to have snow forced into my face today?" He asked, wiping his face.

"As many times as you misbehave," Luciana laughed, kissing his cheek.

He smiled at her and pulled her in for a hug. "I love you."

She smiled, wrapping an arm around Loki's shoulder. "I love you too."

* * *

**Please review!**

**PS. Just to let you guys know, I may not be able to update as fast as I was in the past. I'm really sorry, but ****I'm just really busy at this time of my life right now and I'm also trying to pay a little more attention the other story I have out right now since I've spent so much time on this one already.**

**This story isn't going on hiatus, but it'll take me much more time to update it than it has in the past, like I'll be lucky if I can get in two updates a month. I really hope you guys understand, it's just that I've gotten pretty busy all of the sudden and I wasn't expecting it.  
**


	45. Chapter Forty-Five

**This update was meant to happen like two days ago, but I'm insanely busy.**

**Disclaimer: All characters involving Thor belong to Marvel, I only own the OC's present in this story.**

* * *

"I love you," Loki whispered, kissing Luciana's ear as they watched the sunset outside their window.

She smiled and placed her hands on his arms that were wrapped securely around her stomach. "I love you too."

"You know," He said, kissing her ear again. "The first thing I thought when I first laid eyes on you was-" He was cut off by someone knocking on the door, and he sighed. "I'll be right back." He said to her, kissing her cheek once as she nodded.

He walked over to the door and opened it, greeted with the sight of a guard. "Yes?" He asked, eying the man.

"The Allfather wishes to speak to you and Prince Thor about an urgent matter," The guard replied. "He requests your presence in the throne room immediately."

Luciana's eyebrows furrowed as she looked at the guard. What could be urgent?

"Oh, alright," Loki said, nodding to the guard. "Tell him I'll be right there."

"He has stressed that your presence is required immediately." The guard stated, and Loki sighed.

He looked over his shoulder at Luciana. "I'll be back soon."

Luciana nodded, and waved him off with her hand. "Alright, I'll be here. I love you."

He smiled at her. "I love you too."

"Sir, the Allfather-"

"Yes, I heard you." Loki cut the guard off, walking out of the room and closing the door behind him.

Luciana sighed and picked up a book from Loki's desk, opening it up at the first page and reading it as she paced the room. An hour or two passed and Luciana still paced the room, enthralled, as she usually was, by her book. Suddenly the door to the chambers slammed opened and closed and she was abruptly pulled out of the story, and she whirled around to look at the door.

Loki stormed in, an angry expression on his face. He walked towards a table in the corner that held a bottle of alcohol and a glass. He angrily pulled the cork out the bottle, poured some of the liquid in the cup and drank it greedily, swirling it around in his mouth. He took the bottle with him as he walked towards the couch, sitting down and leaning forwards as he stared into the fire

"Loki?" Luciana tentatively asked. He raised an eyebrow urging her to continue, still staring into the fire. She closed the book and put it on the desk. "Are you alright?"

"Yes," He replied simply, taking a sip out of the bottle.

Luciana sighed and walked towards him, sitting beside him on the couch. "You seem angry."

"I'm fine," He snapped, before sighing. "I'm fine," He repeated, his tone softening but anger still evident in his voice.

"Loki," Luciana said softly, putting a hand on his back. "What happened?"

He narrowed his eyes towards her, jaw clenched. "It's nothing."

"That door slam didn't sound like nothing."

"Luciana, I'm fine, _alright_?" He snapped again, louder this time, still not looking at her.

Luciana sighed and stood up, taking the bottle of alcohol from his hands. "Fine, don't tell me. I'm only trying to figure out what's wrong with you, but if you want to push me away, that's your right." She placed the bottle back in its original place and walked to the bedroom, pulling her hair out of its bun.

She shook her head as she entered the wash chambers, stripping herself of her dress and undergarments as she watched the bathtub fill with water. She stepped into the tub and sighed as the hot water hit her skin.

She probably could've handled the situation with Loki differently, and she thought about going back out and trying to get him to talk, but she didn't liked being snapped at and she didn't want to get snapped at again. She only wanted to know why he was upset; it wasn't as if she were asking him to cater to her every whim. He honestly had no right to go off on her like that.

Luciana could feel her eyes getting heavy, and knew that if she didn't get out of the tub soon she would most likely drown in her sleep. Sighing, she stood up and made her way out of the tub, conjuring up a towel and a nightgown and within minutes she was dry and ready for bed. She ran a hand through her hair as she walked back into the bedroom, and she sighed as she saw Loki sitting up in the bed, a book in his hands.

His eyes flickered to her before going back to the book, and she shook her head as she climbed into bed.

There was silence for a few moments before Loki sighed and closed his book. "I'm sorry," He said, looking over at her. "I'm just a bit irritable."

"It's alright," She replied, shrugging. "I just don't understand why you snapped at me when I'm only trying to be supportive."

Loki sighed as he laid his head down on the pillows. "Thor is going to be king."

Suddenly everything clicked in her mind; Loki's anger, Odin's urgency to see his sons. It was all because one of them was to be king, and that one was Thor, not Loki. Luciana sat up and looked down at her husband, who had anger still etched onto his pale face.

"Really?" She asked. "And...Did you want to be king? Is that why you're angry?"

"No," He responded. "I'm angry because I've always been second placed to Thor, always. Even now when we're adults! It makes me upset because I'm more mature than Thor, I'm married for Valhalla's sake! Yet he, who has always been arrogant, selfish, and sometimes downright idiotic, gets to be king. Whereas I, as always, am stuck being overshadowed by the _greatness_ that is my brother! He's expected to be in charge of the welfare of the entire realm when he can hardly defend us from a dragon!"

"It's not good for the kingdom to have Thor on the throne; he'll wage a war wherever he can find one. He doesn't think about what's good for others, especially when he's angry! And yet after all of Thor's stupidity, my father still favours him over me! I've been trying to please that man since the day I was born, and I've still never measured up to my brother!"

By now Loki's voice was raised, and he was sitting up once more. "Sure, Thor's stronger than I am and perhaps he's a bit better at weaponry than I am, but still, even with all my skills, I can _never_ please my father. I've spent years studying and practicing magic, becoming as intelligent as I can possibly be just so I can make up for what I lack in strength. But it has never worked, all my attempts have been in vain. I just want to be treated as Thor equal, not as his weak younger brother."

"A part of me has always known that Thor would get the throne, and perhaps I would be a bit more okay with it if I had been treated like him. But I wasn't, I don't think my father even _considered_ me for the throne. Why would he? I'm not the strongest, and I'm not his favourite child. How could I be expected to rule a kingdom?"

Luciana looked at him sadly. _Jealousy_, she thought, he's jealous of Thor, and no doubt always has been. "Loki," She said quietly, putting a hand on his chest. "I'm sure your father loves you dearly, and he has to love you just as much as he does Thor, he's your father!"

"But he doesn't," Loki stated, lying back down and flipping over onto his side, his back to Luciana. "It's obvious he doesn't."

There is a common assumption that there are only two sides to an argument, black being one side, white being the other. But what is overlooked in almost every debate on nearly anything is the grey. In this case, Luciana was grey. She agreed with Loki that Thor was too reckless for his own good and she couldn't imagine him ruling over a kingdom. But at the same time, she couldn't imagine Loki as a king either.

One would think that she would be entirely on Loki's side, and furious that he wasn't going to be king. But she wasn't, despite her efforts to be, she just wasn't.

She felt conflicted with Odin's choice, on one hand he had a strong, but arrogant and brash prince, who thought of his own want before the safety and well being of others. And on the other he had an intelligent, but mischievous and somewhat manipulating prince, who was clearly allowing his years of bottled up jealousy and anger consume him.

Neither, as it currently stood, were fit to be kings.

She sighed and crawled closer to him. She placed a hand on his back and rubbed circles.

"For what it's worth," She said, leaning her head on his shoulder. "You'll always be my favourite. Thor's strength may be quite alluring to the other girls in Asgard, but for what he has in strength he lacks in heart. I'm not attracted to a man who thinks war and bloodshed is the answer to everything, I'm not attracted to a man that will spend his days sparring, his evenings drinking, and his nights most likely in the arms of a servant girl."

"But what I am attracted to is a man who is intelligent enough to know that a simple conversation can form alliances, prevent wars, and change the views of many. I'm attracted to someone who would rather spend his time with the ones he loves and learning new things. Loki, that's you. I'll only ever fall in love with one person, Loki, and that's you, because there is no one else quite like you in the Nine Realms. It doesn't matter what Odin thinks, in my eyes you are more than equal to Thor, in my eyes he is overshadowed by you. Isn't that all that matters?"

Loki was silent for a moment before he looked over his shoulder at her and sighed. "Somehow you have the ability to make me feel happiness in my darkest hour. Now there is no doubt in my mind that you were sent from Valhalla just for me." She smiled at him as he turned onto his other side to face her. "You could have any man in Asgard," He said. "Yet you chose me, and you haven't any idea how grateful I am that you did."

Luciana smiled at him and wrapped her arms around him, his head finding its way to the crook of her neck. He kissed the spot gently and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to him. She kissed his cheek, running her hand through his hair.

"Goodnight," She smiled softly at him.

He smiled back at her. "Goodnight."

* * *

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